WINGS ESSAYS ON INVERTEBRATE CONSERVATION

THE XERCES SOCIETY SPRING 2016 CONTENTS

The Xerces Society began as a conservation group, and, although the orga­ nization’s work has expanded greatly, remain at the heart of our efforts.

The Xerces Society’s Roots in Butterfly Conservation Scott Hoffman Black Page 3.

North American : Are Once-Common Species in Trouble? Scott Hoffman Black Attention is often focused on the disappearance of rare butterflies, but many of North America’s widespread and common species are also declining. Page 5.

Gardening with Butterflies Matthew Shepherd Anyone can create a place that butterflies will want to visit. The strategies the au­ thor suggests are adaptable for a broad range of locations. Page 10.

Conserving the Crystal , North Carolina’s Newest Butterfly Allison Leidner Discovered in the late 1970s, the crystal skipper was already facing threats to its coastal habitat by the time it was officially described and named last year.Page 16.

Conservation Spotlight Over the last half century, Butterfly Conservation has become the most respected and influential voice protecting butterflies and in Britain.Page 22.

Invertebrate Notes A roundup of new books and recent research. Page 24.

Staff Profile Meet Sarina Jepsen, director of our endangered species and aquatics programs. Page 26.

Xerces News Updates on Xerces Society projects and successes. Page 27.

2 WINGS The Xerces Society’s Roots In Butterfly Conservation

Scott Hoffman Black

Butterfly conservation has always been portant for granted, and many at the core of what we do at the Xerces people work for their benefit. Society. Robert Michael Pyle, the Soci­ A major focus of our endeavors is ety’s founder, envisioned an organiza­ the conservation of the rarest species tion that would bring butterfly conser­ and the ones that we know are in de­ vation into the mainstream, and after cline. We hope never to see another forty-five years we have made tremen­ butterfly go extinct as did our name­ dous strides. Agencies and conservation sake, the Xer­ces blue (Glaucopsyche xer- organizations no longer take these im­ ces). Such species as the Karner blue (Ly- caeides samuelis), Taylor’s checkerspot (Euphydryas editha taylori), and even the broadly distributed (Danaus plexippus) receive our attention because they need robust conservation efforts to ensure that their populations are protected and restored. Our approach varies depending on the needs of any particular species and the threats to its survival, and over the last few years that approach has had some considerable successes:­ ◆ More than two thousand acres of prairie habitat was restored for the Kar­ ner blue butterfly in Wisconsin, thanks to collaboration with academic part­ ners, farmers, and agency staff. ◆ More than six hundred acres of es­ sential mountain meadow habitat is being managed for the mardon skip­ The Xerces Society began with a focus on per ( mardon). Xerces scientists butterflies and continues to work for their completed surveys, developed monitor­ protection, irrespective of size. With a ing protocols, undertook research into half-inch wingspan, the western pygmy- blue (Brephidium exilis) is the smallest the ways that fire impacts these but­ butterfly in North America. Photograph terflies, and ultimately developed the by Bryan E. Reynolds. management plans that are now being

SPRING 2016 3 ­implemented by the U.S. Forest Service Smithsonian Institution and which was and the Bureau of Land Management. published by Sierra Club Books in 1990. This book helped push butterfly ­ ◆ We have restored and protected tens ing to a different level and promoted of thousands of acres for the monarch as a means of conservation. butterfly. With the precipitous decline I am delighted to announce that in its populations, we have ramped up we have a new book: Gardening for But- our efforts to protect, manage, and re­ terflies: How You can Attract and Protect store monarch habitat in all landscapes Beautiful, Beneficial , published from farmland to wildlife refuges, and in March by Timber Press. Gardening for now have staff working on monarch Butterflies was written in equal measure conservation across the United States. for butterfly lovers and , and ◆ Taylor’s checkerspot butterfly was provides all you need to know to create listed as “endangered” after a decade a safe harbor for butterflies in a sea of of advocacy, and now, surviving on the artificial landscapes and paved surfaces. last of its prairie habitat, it is getting the The book introduces readers to but­ conservation attention it deserves. terfly conservation and provides sugges­ tions for native to attract butter­ ◆ Working to protect not just butter­ flies, garden designs to help them thrive, flies but all Lepidoptera, we recently pro­ and best practices to accommodate all of vided feedback on the conservation of their life stages. In addition, we include the federally endangered Kern primrose a chapter on ways that gardeners can sphinx (). provide for moths and enjoy their night­ Although many of the species time antics. The book also provides in­ we work on have very specific habitat formation on how all of these practices needs— wet mountain meadows, for can be adapted for a wide range of larger instance, or intact prairies—all butter­ landscapes. Wherever you live, Garden- flies need four things: 1) nectar sources ing for Butterflies will enable you to create to fuel adult flight and mating; 2) host great places for these beautiful animals. plants on which they can lay eggs and At Xerces we believe that address­ on which their can feed ing the challenges faced by butterflies and grow; 3) places to pupate and over­ and other invertebrates requires broad winter; and 4) a refuge from insecti­ grassroots participation. Over the past cides. One neat thing about working to four and a half decades the Society has conserve butterflies is that we can all grown from a small group to become an help butterflies by planting and manag­ international conservation organiza­ ing habitat where we live: anyone, from tion. Our constituency has expanded in urbanite to farmer, can be engaged. parallel, and now includes people from Xerces has actively supported gar­ all walks of life. By joining us in taking dening that nurtures butterflies and action to help butterflies and sharing other insects since the release of our your passion for this important effort, first book,: Creating you can help exponentially increase the Summer Magic in Your Garden, which amount of habitat so that all butterflies we produced in partnership with the will not just survive, but thrive.

4 WINGS North American Butterflies: Are Once-Common Species in Trouble?

Scott Hoffman Black

I grew up during the heyday of the your car will be practically spotless American muscle car and have teenage when you get to the other side. memories of rocketing down Nebraska The situation was even more no­ country roads in my 1971 Ford Mustang ticeable when I stepped out of the car. In Mach 1. Back then even a short drive many areas, there were shockingly few resulted in hundreds of dead bugs splat­ insects. Where I might once have seen tered across the grille, so I was always thousands of monarchs in the fields, washing my car to keep it clean and yards, and roadsides, I now saw perhaps shiny. When I returned to the Midwest a dozen. Butterflies are disappearing, last year with my wife and two kids— along with countless other creatures. now driving a much more sensible and With more than eighteen thousand fuel-efficient rental car— I was struck species of butterflies and ten times as by the paucity of bugs. These days you many species of moths gracing our plan­ can drive the entire four hundred miles et, we know relatively little about the across the broad state of Nebraska and status of each one, but the information

The regal fritillary (Speyeria idalia) was at one time found in thirty-two U.S. states, and now appears to be secure in only one. Photograph by Bryan E. Reynolds.

SPRING 2016 5 we do have is not encouraging. Recent tion. Such butterflies are often called reports from practically every continent “rare endemics”—that is, species that are document unprecedented declines in a found only in particular places, either broad array of butterflies. in a limited geographic area or occupy­ Studies in Europe reveal that on av­ ing a very specific type of habitat. For erage the continent’s grassland butter­ a population living within such tight fly species have had population losses of constraints, the advent of a housing de­ almost 50 percent since the early 1990s. velopment in or adjacent to its habitat, Similarly, three-quarters of Britain’s but­ or the invasion of that habitat by weedy terfly species are in decline. The situa­ plants, can lead to decline and endan­ tion is just as disturbing in the United germent. Indeed, most of the butterflies States, where at least five butterflies have listed by NatureServe as being at risk of gone extinct since 1950, another twen­ extinction are rare endemics. ty-five are presently listed as endangered It is, however, becoming apparent nationwide, and four more are listed as that many of the common species are threatened. NatureServe, one of the disappearing as well, though such de­ leading sources of information about clines were hard to notice at first. These rare and endangered species, assessed all common species were historically the of the roughly eight hundred butterfly most populous, butterflies that you species in the United States and found would find in your yard or notice along that 17 percent are at risk of extinction. the side of the road. They are the ones we Much of my career has been spent expect to see regularly—and, although focusing on conservation of the rarest we now see them less frequently or in of the rare—those butterflies and other scores rather than hundreds, the fact animals that are on the brink of extinc­ that we continue to see them at all fur­

Tawny-edged skipper (Polites themistocles) nectaring on purple coneflower (Echinacea angustifolia). Photograph by Bryan E. Reynolds.

6 WINGS ther masks their decline. It is often hard U.S. states and the Canadian province to spot this type of slow, incremental of Manitoba, but now Kansas is the erosion of butterfly populations, espe­ only place where it is apparently secure. cially when our focus is on rare species Nature­Serve lists the regal fritillary as or on those that are already known to be extirpated from Manitoba and fourteen threatened. Who was even counting the states, and as critically imperiled, imper­ common or garden butterflies? iled, or vulnerable in fifteen; the other The realization that broadly distrib­ two states in its historic range have not uted species are declining was brought tracked it. And the regal fritillary is not home to me a few years ago when I was the only prairie species that is in decline; invited to give a keynote talk, at the whole groups of butterflies that rely on Butterfly Conservation Symposium in open grasslands, such as grass skippers, England, on the status of butterflies in appear to be in trouble throughout the North America. It was a big topic and Midwest and Pacific Northwest. one where I felt I needed some feedback One problem with determining the from colleagues to make sure that I cov­ status of many species is that there are ered it adequately. In preparing for the few long-term data sets that record but­ presentation, I asked a number of ento­ terfly numbers in the United States, but mologists a series of questions, the last there are a couple that are worth noting. one being, “What is your take-home The first of these is an analysis by Greg message about the status of butterflies Breed, Sharon Stichter, and Elizabeth in North America?” What amazed me Crone of two decades of observational was the similarity among the respons­ data gathered by the Massachusetts But­ es. The answer from Dr. Jaret Daniels terfly Club, compiled over the course of of the University of Florida sums up the nearly twenty thousand one-day sur­ thinking of most of the scientists I que­ veys covering a hundred butterfly spe­ ried: “There is no doubt that the rate of cies common in the state. The analysis decline for at-risk butterfly populations revealed that the abundance of south­ continues to accelerate. . . . What should erly distributed species increased while be most alarming to all of us is that this at the same time those species with a downward trend has now spilled over more northern distribution decreased. to include many previously more wide- This finding corresponds with other cli­ ranging and common butterflies.” mate studies demonstrating that butter­ This precipitous decline is epito­ fly populations may be moving north­ mized by the monarch butterfly (Da- ward and to higher elevations, but the naus plexippus), whose population has study also showed something new: spe­ fallen by over 70 percent across North cies that overwinter as eggs or as newly America since monitoring efforts began hatched larvae experienced greater de­ in the mid-1990s. Another victim of clines than did those that overwinter at this trend is the regal fritillary (Speyeria later stages. idalia), a striking butterfly that lives in The second investigation is ongoing the tallgrass and mixed-grass prairies and is now North America’s longest-run­ of eastern and central North America. ning butterfly study. Dr. Arthur Shapiro, Historically it was found in thirty-two a professor at the University of Califor­

SPRING 2016 7 nia at Davis, has been monitoring but­ drivers. Urban landscapes increasingly terflies across northern for displace natural ones, and those former­ nearly forty-five years. He began in1972 ly green spaces that are not completely with a single site near , and paved over are fragmented. For its part, over the next two decades added more favors fewer types of , sites; his regular transect now stretches leaves fewer edges unplowed or untram­ from sea level on the San Francisco Bay pled, and tolerates ever fewer “pests.” to the crest of the Sierra Nevada near Insecticides and used on all Lake Tahoe. of these landscapes directly kill both Dr. Shapiro and his colleagues, the butterflies and the plants that they including Dr. Matthew Forister at the rely on. The wild places that do remain University of Nevada at Reno, monitor suffer the effects of invasive species and these sites every year, and though each climate uncertainty, as well as the de­ of the locations is a natural or semi- structive impacts of mining, logging, natural area that has not been directly and other forms of resource extraction. impacted by urban or agricultural de­ The fact is that we have created a velopment, they have found that but­ fully human-dominated world, with terflies are declining at every one of devastating results for the other inhabit­ the sites. Their study shows that these ants of this planet, including butterflies changes are occurring across all butter­ and moths. But our lives would be great­ flies: every family has species that are in ly impoverished without these winged decline. The data also revealed that pop­ creatures. They are of vital importance ulation losses are more severe at lower to ecosystems, inspire poetry and art, elevations; consistent with the results provide livelihoods, offer a window into of other studies, some butterfly species the natural world, and bring beauty into seem to be moving to higher elevations. our cities and neighborhoods. We must One of the most interesting findings is do whatever we can to restore their pop­ that endemic butterfly species appear to ulations to health. be in only slightly more severe decline The situation poses an enormous than more-wide-ranging butterflies. challenge, yet despite the biodiversity At one site, for example, the western crisis unfolding all around us, we at the pygmy-blue (Brephidium exilis), a small, Xerces Society believe that butterflies relatively localized species, is showing and other animals can have a secure fu­ a similar decline to the cabbage white ture. Continuing research is, of course, (Pieris rapae), one of the most common imperative, since the more we know the butterflies in North America. more effective we can be in our conser­ Across the board, the information vation efforts. There are a lot of data sets we have leads to the conclusion that a that can help answer these larger ques­ huge number of butterfly species, in­ tions, but a coordinated effort must be cluding many that we would consider made to compile and assess all of the common, are indeed in decline. What data available. is happening in our landscapes to cause Even so, we cannot wait until we such alarming change? Loss of habitat have assembled “perfect” information and habitat degradation are important to move forward, because by then it will

8 WINGS Moths make up the larger portion of Lepidoptera. We know even less about how well they are faring in North America than we do about the state of butterflies. Photograph by Bryan E. Reynolds. be too late. We already know that the Farms, roadsides, and your own future health of the planet requires a garden all have a critical role to play. thoughtful and sensitive reconciliation Whether you live in California’s Cen­ between the human environment and tral Valley, upstate New York, or the pan­ the more natural one. Policies that could handle of Texas, you can act right now accelerate that reconciliation are desper­ to help save the earth’s butterflies. Your ately needed; at the same time there is efforts will support countless other crea­ much that we can do, as individuals, tures as well, from lady beetles to song­ while we as a society work for those poli­ birds—and, in the end, humanity itself cies to be enacted. will be a major beneficiary of a more We must actively protect, enhance, conservation-minded approach. and restore resilient habitats, in which both plants and butterflies can flourish. Many butterfly species require quality Scott Hoffman Black, executive director of habitat connected by corridors to allow the Xerces Society, has been involved with populations to move across the land­ butterfly conservation for more than two scape; larger natural areas can serve as decades. He serves as chair of the Interna- the anchors, but interstitial areas of tional Union for Conservation of Nature habitat are vital if we hope to protect (IUCN) Butterfly Specialist Group and as butterflies as well as other pollinators. co-chair of the Monarch Joint Venture, and We also need to reduce stressors, and his several awards include the U.S. Forest in particular we must minimize the use Service Wings Across the Americas 2012 of . Butterfly Conservation Award.

SPRING 2016 9 Gardening with Butterflies

Matthew Shepherd

I learned gardening at my mother’s side, East Africa and now in western Oregon, and I’ll admit that at first I didn’t really and have created butterfly-friendly gar­ enjoy it. As she worked, my mum would dens in each place. leave piles of weeds and clippings; it was At the core of any garden, of course, my job to clear them up and add them are plants. Butterfly are no ex­ to the heap. Gradually, though, ception, although, rather than choosing this became more than just a source of plants based on their individual color pocket money. I began to notice what or shape or whether they combine in a was happening around me—how the pleasing way, the choices are guided by plants grew, the changing blooms of additional considerations such as their different months, the birds, and, in par­ nectar content, the degree to which they ticular, the butterflies. On my parents’ are regionally appropriate, or whether bookshelves, I found a copy of Josef caterpillars will eat them. This is not to Moucha’s A Concise Guide in Colour: But- say that a butterfly garden will be unat­ terflies, and began to put names to what tractive to people—far from it. A garden I was seeing: brimstone, peacock, small full of nectar plants provides a beautiful tortoiseshell, red admiral, painted lady. backdrop for family barbecues and play I was hooked. dates, for graduation photographs and Over time, I took a more active role lazy summer afternoons. in the garden, and when we moved to When you start thinking about southern England and had a new gar­ your own garden, one of the first pieces den I helped my mum select plants and of information you’ll need is an idea extend the flower borders. In time, the of which species of butterflies occur in garden was transformed. Imagine an your local area. You can then identify English country garden— complete the host plants necessary for their cat­ with a thatched cottage—and you have erpillars, which may be flowers, grasses, a pretty good picture of what this looked shrubs, or even trees; many of them will like. And it was not just beautiful: it was also be nectar plants. In addition, you full of life. will want to discover how your local but­ In the years since then, I have ­ terflies survive winter—as eggs, caterpil­ ed and tended butterfly gardens around lars, pupae, or adults—which will guide a succession of my own homes and you in deciding how you can provide for have had the pleasure of working with their entire life cycles. There are numer­ schools and parks to design and create ous good field guides and websites that gardens, and I’ve discovered that the can help with this, but also don’t forget skills learned in one place can be adapt­ to spend time observing butterflies to ed to new locations. I moved several see which plants they are using in your more times in Britain and also lived in neighborhood.

10 WINGS Plan your flower plantings so as Incorporating a wide variety of to create large blocks of color, because flowers with different colors, shapes, these tend to attract more butterflies. and fragrances increases your chances of Their compound eyes are good at dis­ attracting the greatest number of species cerning color—although they don’t see of butterflies and other flower visitors. colors as we do —but not at picking out Moreover, a successful butterfly garden small details; a massed planting (such will have nectar plants that bloom all as a cluster of five or more of the same across the growing season (which, in plants) creates a splash of color that but­ some warm climates, includes winter). terflies will notice. They will potentially The early spring or fall butterflies may visit flowers of any hue, but generally not be so obvious, but providing for prefer those that to us look white, yel­ them can significantly boost the diversi­ low, pink, orange, red, or purple. Once ty of your garden. Potential components butterflies find their way to your garden, include spring-flowering shrubs such as additional flowers will give them reason wild lilac (Ceanothus), cherry (Prunus), to stay. hawthorn (Crataegus), and serviceberry

Ideally, the plants in a butterfly garden will be in a sunny location, and will offer a diver- sity of species for nectar as well as host plants to support caterpillars. Small gardens may not be able to offer everything, but every garden can contribute to making a neighbor- hood more welcoming for butterflies. Photograph by Penny Stowe.

SPRING 2016 11 (Amelanchier), and such fall-blooming reduction in numbers on nonnative nectar plants as asters (Symphyotrichum), plants compared to native plants. We goldenrods (Solidago), and sunflowers shouldn’t be too surprised; nonnative (). garden plants are often selected to be Native plants support a wider range “pest-free,” which means fewer biting of butterflies and moths than do non­ and chewing insects, and those biters native species, particularly as caterpil­ and chewers include butterfly caterpil­ lar host plants, as clearly demonstrated lars. (To get a deeper understanding of by research done by Dr. Douglas Tal­ the importance of this consideration, lamy and his colleagues at the Univer­ read Dr. Tallamy’s book, Bringing Nature sity of Delaware. Comparing the num­ Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with ber of species of butterflies and moths Native Plants.) that were supported by native plants There is a place for nonnative plants vs. nonnative ones, Tallamy found an in a garden, though, so if you are a lover average of seventy-four species on na­ of catmint or majoram or English lav­ tive plants and only five on nonnatives. ender, don’t despair. They can serve The abundance of butterflies and moths as good nectar sources, but, if you do also differed, with an average 75 percent plant nonnative species, please be care­

When planted to create a mass of color, flowers are more likely to attract butterflies— though maybe not as many swallowtails (Papilio) as shown in this garden on sweet Joe Pye weed (Eutrochium purpureum)! Photograph by Debbie Roos.

12 WINGS The right plants can support butterflies in shaded areas. Polydamas swallowtail ( polydamas) laying eggs on pipevine (). Photograph by Bob Wager. ful never to use invasive species even if can grow satisfactorily in at least partial they attract butterflies. (Lanta- shade include broadleaf lupine (Lupinus na) and purple butterfly bush ( latifolius), common blue violet ( davidii), for example, are two butterfly- sororia), Joe Pye weed (Eutrochium), and attracting shrubs that are identified as pipevine (Aristolochia). noxious weeds in some states. One issue that wasn’t a concern Butterflies are sun-loving insects. back when I was learning about gar­ Good habitat tends to consist of open, dening is the presence of pesticides in sunny landscapes protected from strong plants sold at garden centers. Driven winds, since butterflies need warm tem­ by the demand for blemish-free stock, peratures and sunshine in order to fly nurseries have increasingly employed and forage. With this in mind, it is ideal a group of insecticides that act systemi­ to situate your butterfly garden in an cally. Systemic insecticides are absorbed area that receives six to eight hours of by plants upon application and then dis­ direct sunlight each day. If you have the tributed throughout plant tissues, some­ option, establishing your garden on a times making their way into pollen and southern exposure will maximize the nectar. While this provides long-lasting amount of sun received. Still, although protection against such pests as most butterflies (and their food plants) , it also makes the plants poten­ prefer sun, several butterfly plants tol­ tially toxic to bees, butterflies, and other erate full or partial shade, so you can beneficial insects that eat pollen, sip take heart if your garden space does nectar, or feed on plant tissues. An ad­ not get full sun. Larval host plants that ditional step in the process of ­selecting

SPRING 2016 13 television: no uniform or neat rows of brightly colored bedding plants, but instead much more diversity of struc­ ture and species. Shrubs provide shelter on rainy or breezy days and the chance of a hidden spot to pupate. They also offer different orientations with chang­ ing sun angles, and thus a variety of basking opportunities where insects can warm themselves. The corners and mar­ gins of my garden are places for brush piles or logs, serving as somewhere to heap raked-up leaves or store trimmed stems and creating just the kind of unti­ diness that supports the greatest garden biodiversity. It is also in these places that the newts and salamanders shelter, as well as native snails. Some neighborhood associations and cities have regulations against Chrysalises of the monarch (Danaus plex- weeds or poorly maintained yards, and ippus). Photograph by Kenneth Setzer. the variety and profusion of a butterfly garden may seem inappropriate to those plants, then, is to ask garden-center who prefer their landscapes to be more staff what their plants have been treat­ manicured. Surrounding your garden ed with, since you will not want to pur­ with tidy, distinct borders can help chase plants that have been treated with overcome such objections, as can visible systemics. Nurseries that grow their statements such as the Xerces Society’s own stock, and native-plant nurseries in “pollinator habitat” sign or the “butter­ particular, will be in a better position to fly garden” or “certified wildlife habitat” provide such details, while retail outlets signs from the National Wildlife Fed­ may not have this information avail­ eration. These help inform neighbors able. You should avoid buying plants and others that the diverse native plant from any source that cannot verify that landscape you have created is thought­ they are free from systemic pesticides. fully maintained and cared for. Butterflies need more than nectar Butterflies are collectively in de­ sources and food plants to cline because of habitat loss, insecticide survive an entire year. They also need use, and climate change. Some of these areas in which to bask, secure places to issues might seem too great for a garden­ pupate, and refuges in which to spend er to address, but every yard can contrib­ the winter or to seek cover during bad ute something toward building a more weather. As a result, my own garden sustainable landscape while creating does not look much like the ones in ad­ resilience in butterfly populations and vertisements for hardware stores seen on strengthening their ability to overcome

14 WINGS threats. And indeed, butterflies are just for change within our domestic land­ a starting point. Once your garden is scapes. And it is immensely satisfying established, you’ll notice that there to see the results when, with a cup of tea are many other insects attracted to the in one hand and a book in the other, I flowers, as well as a host of other wildlife find escape from the outside world amid thriving in the healthy landscape. the constant movement of flowers and The afternoons I spent helping my brightly colored wings. mother in the garden were the catalyst for what has become an abiding pas­ sion. Four decades later I still have that Matthew Shepherd is the Xerces Society’s copy of A Concise Guide in Colour—with communications director. He previously “Shepherd” in my mother’s neat hand­ worked with the pollinator program and writing inside the front cover—a direct is a co-author of several Xerces books, in- connection to the roots of my personal cluding the newly released Gardening for gardening history. Butterfly garden­ Butterflies. Before joining Xerces, ­Matthew ing may once have been the preserve led community-based conservation pro- of a few enthusiasts, but it is now be­ grams in Britain and Kenya; he has gar- coming more widespread, a movement dened everywhere he has lived.

The author’s garden includes an abundance of flowers that bloom sequentially from spring to fall. Its diverse structure provides shelter in different seasons, nurturing butterflies through their entire life cycle. Photograph by Matthew Shepherd.

SPRING 2016 15 Conserving the Crystal Skipper, North Carolina’s Newest Butterfly

Allison Leidner

Hugging North Carolina’s Crystal discovery and description. In the early Coast is a line of narrow barrier islands. 2000s, following a preliminary assess­ The sheltered waters behind them are ment of the skipper’s status, the U.S. popular with boaters, and the beauti­ Fish and Wildlife Service asked North ful beaches facing the Atlantic are well Carolina State University’s Dr. Nick known to beachgoers, birdwatchers, Haddad, an expert on rare butterflies, to and shell hunters, but what has gone un­ conduct research on the skipper to bet­ noticed to most visitors is a small brown ter understand its natural history and butterfly, a skipper, living among the habitat requirements. In 2004 I joined sand dunes. Indeed, this butterfly was Dr. Haddad’s laboratory as a doctoral unknown until the late 1970s, when it candidate. He suggested that the then- was discovered by Dr. Eric Quinter. still-unnamed skipper would be a good How does someone find a new but­ study species for testing questions about terfly? One answer, which may amuse conservation strategies to ameliorate the avid butterfly watchers, is this: when effects of . After looking for something else. In 1978, Dr. an initial field season, I was hooked on Quinter was searching for a rare moth, this butterfly, which I dubbed the “crys­ when instead, at Fort Macon State Park, tal skipper” because it is native to the he came across a skipper with which he Crystal Coast and has crystal-like white was unfamiliar. He collected specimens spots on its wings. and brought them to the attention of Dr. The crystal skipper has a tiny range, John Burns, a colleague at the Smithso­ living only on a thirty-mile stretch of nian Institution’s National Museum of barrier islands along the southern side Natural History. Although the skipper of Cape Lookout. The island vegetation was placed in the , for is greatly influenced by the prevailing a variety of reasons the naming process winds from the Atlantic, and because took quite some time, and it was only the islands in this section of the North last November that it was officially de­ Carolina coast face south, they support scribed and named in the scientific lit­ flora notably different from that of the erature. Publishing his findings in the state’s other barrier islands, which face Journal of the Lepidopterists’ Society, Dr. east. In particular, on these islands the Burns gave the skipper the species name dominant plant in the zone behind the of quinteri, in honor of its discoverer. primary dunes (the first dunes beyond Notwithstanding this lack of an of­ the beach) is seaside little bluestem ficial identity, the butterfly did not go (Schizachyrium littorale), the host plant ignored in the four decades between for the skipper’s caterpillars.

16 WINGS At the east and west ends of this crystal skipper of habitat fragmentation stretch of islands are state parks that are caused by beachside development, with home to thousands of crystal skippers, an eye toward identifying conservation which fly in two generations during strategies. Two hundred years ago, skip­ distinct periods of spring (April–May) per populations were separated from and summer (July–August). Standing each other only by such natural barriers in these parks, you might not guess as ocean inlets and maritime forests. If a that the skipper is rare, but these are hurricane or other event wiped out any the butterfly’s strongholds. In the land given population, the area could be nat­ between the parks, the skipper persists urally repopulated by butterflies flying only in little pockets: a handful of small in from elsewhere along the coast. But nature reserves, “empty” lots, the un­ what now? Those butterflies wandering landscaped yards of the islands’ older down the dune line might turn around homes, and those places where houses upon encountering parking lots or man­ are set back from the ocean far enough icured devoid of dune grasses, or to allow healthy sand-dune vegetation. could get killed by passing cars, or might The total number of adults flying in a just run out of energy when looking for given generation is likely fewer than ten the next patch of dune grass. thousand—a tiny number for any ani­ My research focused on three ques­ mal, especially an insect. tions: Would crystal skippers leave sand Over the course of four years, I dunes and fly through unfamiliar areas? used a combination of field and genetic If they did leave their habitat, how far techniques to look at the effects on the would they fly? And, finally, if they did

Given the common name “crystal skipper” by the author in the mid-2000s, this butterfly did not gain an official name —Atrytonopsis quinteri—until last year, nearly four decades after it was discovered. Photograph by Allison Leidner.

SPRING 2016 17 A thirty-mile stretch of barrier islands fringing North Carolina’s coast is the only known home of the crystal skipper. Increasing development is fragment- ing the butterfly’s habitat. Photograph by Allison Leidner. make it to a new area, would they be ing methods made it possible to piece able to reproduce successfully? Perhaps together the effects on the skipper of all of this questioning is a fancy way of fragmentation in the landscape where asking: “Would the butterfly cross the it lives, with the added benefit of ac­ road? And if it did, would it survive on commodating a realistic time frame the other side?” and the limited budget of a PhD student. Whereas a researcher in a labora­ This work was partially supported by a tory based study has the ability to man­ DeWind Award from the Xerces Society. age the various aspects of an artificial What did the research reveal with environment, working in the field regard to the crystal skipper? For the under the constraints imposed by the edge-behavior observations, crystal ar­rangement of natural vegetation and skippers were captured and then re­ housing developments meant that it was leased at the margins of their sand dune impossible to systematically control all habitat, where they encountered areas variables. Therefore, I employed three such as parking lots, the beach, hous­ research techniques: observations of the ing developments, and maritime forest. behavior of skippers at the edges of their In this way, I could determine whether natural habitats and other landscape skippers would even leave their sand types, mark-and-recapture study, and dune habitat. As it turned out, they population genetics analysis. Combin­ would— flying into developed areas

18 WINGS and maritime forest, though only infre­ to infer whether they move over many quently out over beach and ocean. miles of urban development, maritime The mark–recapture study was done forest, or ocean, and then whether using the tried-and-true method of writ­ they reproduce within the popula­ ing numbers on the wings of butterflies tions to which they moved. During the with a Sharpie marker and then see­ study, allele frequencies were estimated ing where they go. (Contrary to how it from samples collected along the bar­ might seem, when done carefully this rier islands, which showed similarities marking procedure does not harm the among sample locations. Skipper popu­ butterfly). I set up pairs of marking lo­ lations with greater dispersal—that is, cations, each separated by a quarter of a those that exchange more individu­ mile (0.4 kilometer) of continuous sand als—will have greater genetic similar­ dune habitat, lower-intensity urban de­ ity. We found that maritime forest and velopment, or higher-intensity urban ocean inlets were barriers to dispersal development. From the edge-behavior (preventing individuals from being ex­ studies, I knew that skippers would fly changed among populations), whereas into developed areas, and this study the current distribution and intensity confirmed that they would travel at least of development was not. a quarter of a mile. We even found skip­ Each of these studies individually pers that moved more than a mile (1.6 points in a similar direction, but taken kilometers) in just a few days. together they provide clear evidence Finally, studying the population of the importance of stepping stones genetics of the skippers made it possible of habitat— disconnected patches scat­

The author marked and released butterflies to see whether they would fly across devel- oped areas. They would, for at least a quarter of a mile. Photograph by Allison Leidner.

SPRING 2016 19 tered across the islands—in areas where per. Existing protected areas provide continuous corridors of habitat no relatively large areas of habitat and sup­ longer exist. The edge-behavior study port robust skipper populations. To in­ showed that butterflies flew into both crease resilience in the face of storms or urban areas and maritime forest, but other disturbances, there need to be suf­ the genetic studies indicated that forest, ficiently large patches of healthy habitat although not urban areas, was a barrier. scattered throughout the islands. To this Why this difference? Unlike the long end, home and business owners can re­ continuous stretches of maritime forest, tain native vegetation as landscaping urban development does include small and plant native nectar sources. Addi­ patches of habitat with host plants and tionally, it will be important to manage nectar sources. However, if development or eradicate invasive species, such as intensifies to the point where there are beach vitex (Vitex rotundifolia), which no empty housing lots or natural land­ can take over sand dunes and over­ scaping in residential yards and the gaps whelm the seaside little bluestem. between suitable habitat therefore grow Habitat restoration and creation are too great, movement of skippers among also critical. The Army Corps of Engi­ populations could decline to low levels. neers dredges shipping channels and This information readily translates maintains access to ports in the region, to a conservation strategy for the skip­ with the result that a number of islands that were once wetlands are now filled with dredge spoil. Since these areas will not be restored back to marshes, plant­ ing seaside little bluestem to make them favorable for the crystal skipper offers some benefit. Staff at the Rachel Carson Reserve (which is within the North Car­ olina Coastal Reserve and the National Estuarine Research Reserve) planted sea­ side little bluestem on an infilled wet­ land in 2008 and expanded the planted area in 2011. Crystal skippers are now found at this location as well as in an area on the western edge of the reserve where seaside little bluestem naturally colonized dredge spoil. Similar grass- planting efforts could be promoted on barrier islands. Additionally, there is an increasing interest in using natural methods to protect coastal development from storms, particularly in the face of The crystal skipper completes two genera- tions in a year. Adults may be seen during climate change and the associated rise spring and again in summer. Photograph in sea level, and towns along the North by Allison Leidner. Carolina coast are planting dune grass­

20 WINGS The skipper’s host plant grows in a narrow strip behind the main line of dunes. Although this is prime real estate, adequate habitat may remain when houses are set back from the beach. Photograph by Allison Leidner. es to facilitate the formation of dunes cludes modules on the crystal skipper. at the back of the beach. Behind those Taking kids out to see “their” species re­ dunes, seaside little bluestem could be ally brings home how and why conser­ planted to support skippers. vation is important and illustrates the It may have taken scientists forty ways in which local actions can make a years to name Atrytonopsis quinteri, but difference. And when I watch these kids local residents quickly connected with talk to their parents after class, I know this unassuming butterfly. They take we have gained new ambassadors for the pride in the fact that they share their is­ crystal skipper and the conservation of lands with a unique species and many its coastal habitat. of them support conservation efforts on its behalf. One of the most rewarding aspects of my involvement in those ef­ Dr. Allison Leidner is a conservation bi- forts has been a children’s science camp ologist in NASA’s Earth Science Division that I helped initiate in collaboration through a cooperative agreement with the with the Rachel Carson Reserve and Universities Space Research Association, the North Carolina Maritime Museum. where she works on issues of climate change For three summers now, we have run a and biodiversity. She received a DeWind three-day class for middle-school stu­ Award from the Xerces Society to support dents on coastal conservation that in­ her PhD studies on the crystal skipper.

SPRING 2016 21 CONSERVATION SPOTLIGHT

Butterfly Conservation It could be said that Britain is the home as the organization’s president and who of butterfly conservation. The country has brought much well-deserved atten­ boasts a long history of naturalists, in­ tion to the group’s endeavors. cluding John Ray, who in the late seven­ Butterfly Conservation members teenth century was the first person to can participate through a network of describe the complete life cycle of but­ thirty-two volunteer-run local branch­ terflies and moths. It may also lay claim es, which organize a broad range of pub­ to the first nature reserves established to lic events, such as butterfly walks, moth protect butterflies—Wickham Fen and nights, and habitat-conservation days. Woodwalton Fen—and almost certain­ Members of the local branches include ly to the first organization dedicated to expert and enthusiastic naturalists who them, the Committee for the Protection join in monitoring programs for butter­ of British Lepidoptera, established in flies and moths, thus strengthening the 1925 (and chaired by Lord Walter Roths­ organization’s scientific base. child, whose niece, Miriam Rothschild, Among Butterfly Conservation’s would become a pioneer in butterfly gar­ array of programs are four that are par­ dening and the use of native plants). ticularly noteworthy. The United King­ Britain is also the home of Butterfly dom Butterfly Monitoring Scheme has Conservation, a nonprofit organization been running since 1976, and now has that, for nearly half a century, has been more than a thousand regularly moni­ the most influential voice protecting tored sites. The distribution survey of British butterflies and moths. Formed in Butterflies for the New Millennium 1968 by a group of naturalists alarmed contains more than ten million records, by the noticeable decline in butterfly while that of the National Moth Record­ populations, Butterfly Conservation ing Scheme has more than twenty mil­ now has a staff of more than seventy lion. And then there’s the Big Butterfly people across England, Wales, Scotland, Count, which truly is big: more than and Northern Ireland. Its work spans di­ forty-five thousand people participated rect conservation, advocacy, education, last summer, counting nearly six hun­ and research. dred thousand butterflies. In a country that has such a long Butterfly Conservation manages interest in nature, it should be no sur­ thirty-five nature reserves in which prise that Butterfly Conservation enjoys it protects nearly two thousand acres broad public support, with a member­ (eight hundred hectares) of prime but­ ship of more than twenty-eight thou­ terfly and moth habitat. With the parti­ sand. It has also attracted the endorse­ cipation of its local branch members ment of such well-known individuals and through collaboration with land­ as Sir David Attenborough, who serves owners and a variety of organizations,

22 WINGS the group is engaged in hundreds of pollinators pay proper attention to the projects to conserve particular species needs of butterflies and moths. of at-risk butterflies and moths. Work­ And Butterfly Conservation reaches ing with Natural England and other across borders, joining with partners in partners, for example, Butterfly Conser­ European countries to build a greater vation has restored habitat and reintro­ conservation effort throughout the duced the marsh fritillary (Euphydryas continent. In particular, it is sharing aurinia) on eight sites in the county of its hard-won expertise in monitoring: Cumbria in northwest England, reviv­ there are now similar programs estab­ ing the butterfly from a single record in lished in twenty-two countries, build­ 2007 to more than two thousand today. ing a stronger case for conservation and Butterfly Conservation also seeks informing policies continent-wide. Fur­ to change habits and policies through ther extending the organization’s im­ education and advocacy. It works with pact, its Butterfly Symposium attracts schools to present classroom activities hundreds of participants and a slate of and plant butterfly gardens, and en­ speakers from across the world (includ­ gages the public through various chan­ ing Xerces’ executive director Scott nels online, in the media, and in print Hoffman Black in 2011 and 2014). materials. At the national level, Butter­ There is no doubt that Britain’s but­ fly Conservation is working to ensure terflies and moths face great challenges, that agricultural-support programs and but Butterfly Conservation is standing national strategies around wildlife and strong and working hard on their behalf.

Schoolchildren from Chard in southern England discover the won- ders of the moth trap as part of one of Butterfly Conservation’s educa- tion projects, Munching Caterpillars. Photograph by Richard Lucas.

SPRING 2016 23 INVERTEBRATE NOTES

Recent Research Every month, it seems, new research is larvae and a 40 percent reduction in published that adds to our understand­ damage near the flower strips com­ ing of insects and how we can help them pared with the fields bordered by anoth­ —or just makes us stop in our tracks and er crop. This difference was attributed say, “Wow, invertebrates are amazing!” to the presence of beneficial predators Work done in Switzerland by Dr. attracted to the flowers. The study was Matthias Tschumi and colleagues dem­ published in Agriculture, Ecosystems and onstrates the value of planting wildflow­ Environment. (See http://bit.ly/24N6eVj.) ers on farmland to support beneficial in­ The importance of keeping insecti­ sects. The researchers studied the pres­ cides out of wildflower strips and other ence and impact of cereal leaf beetle in habitat was underscored by research a number of wheat fields, half of which done in Colorado by a team of U.S. were bordered by planted wildflower Geological Survey scientists led by Dr. strips, the other half by another crop. Michelle Hladik. Bees collected from Scientists found 66 percent fewer beetle farm fields and grasslands were tested

New research shows the value of flowering habitat near crop fields to support beneficial insects that help with pest control and pollination, and also demonstrates the importance of protecting such areas from pesticides. Photograph by Don Keirstead, New Hampshire NRCS.

24 WINGS for 122 different pesticides, as well as for And in the “wow” category: Tardi­ more than a dozen additional chemicals grades (also called water bears) were re­ produced when pesticides break down. vived after being frozen for thirty years! Nineteen pesticides or break-down In 1983, scientists from Japan’s National products were found in the samples, Institute of Polar Research collected with as many as nine chemicals in a sin­ moss samples in Antarctica; the samples gle sample. The most commonly found included two tardigrades and an egg. was thiamethoxam, a neo­ The samples were already frozen and nicotinoid, which was detected in 46 remained so during the rest of the field percent of samples. From their findings, expedition and in a freezer in the lab. the researchers suggest that bees living When, in 2014, the samples were de­ in areas with more agricultural fields frosted, both of the tardigrades revived suffer greater exposure to pesticides and one subsequently laid eggs, which than do bees in a landscape with more hatched. The single frozen egg also habitat. The research was published hatched—and that tardigrade in turn in Science of the Total Environment. (See laid eggs that successfully hatched. (See http://on.doi.gov/1RPnNNf.) http://bit.ly/1W4EZ2B.)

New Books There are some stellar academic tomes been pushed to the margins. In these on bees (such as Charles D. Michener’s man-made landscapes, garden designers The Bees of the World) that detail their are likely to treat plants as objects to be biology, and some excellent and acces­ placed according to the color and shape sible field guides (Kaufman Field Guide of the blooms or the form and texture of to Insects of North America, for example) foliage. In Planting in a Post-Wild World: that will help you identify many of the Designing Plant Communities for Resilient bees you encounter, but there has been Landscapes (Timber Press, 2015), Thom­ nothing that combines the best of both. as Rainer and Claudia West present an The Bees in Your Backyard: A Guide to alternative perspective, designing plant­ North America’s Bees, by Joseph S. Wilson ing plans to provide ecological function and Olivia Messinger Carril (Princeton, and thereby create low-maintenance 2015), fills that gap. This excellent book landscapes. There is no doubt that na­ provides a full description of bees’ biol­ tive plants are better for native insects, ogy and comprehensive accounts of the but Rainer and West make good argu­ different genera, presented in an engag­ ments for mixing in appropriate non­ ing style and illustrated with great pho­ native species as part of a coherent plant tographs —a thoroughly good read that community that will be better suited to is worth every penny! the location, requiring less maintenance Once you get to know the bees in or irrigation and suffering fewer pest or your backyard, you’ll no doubt want to disease problems. Following their sug­ know more about gardening for them. gestions, we can create gardens that help Our towns and cities are disturbed en­ bridge the gap between natural and arti­ vironments in which nature has largely ficial and support more wildlife.

SPRING 2016 25 STAFF PROFILE

Sarina Jepsen, Endangered Species and Aquatic Programs Director What got you interested in invertebrates? I grew up in rural western Oregon, spend­ ing a lot of time outside. I used to collect various things that I found, including insects. I’ve always been interested in both art and science, and find inspira­ tion in wild, outdoor spaces. In high school, I spent a couple of summers working for the Northwest Youth Corps, living outside, taking environmental education courses, and building trails. I became really interested in ecology and conservation during that time. How did you hear of the Xerces Society? While studying entomology as a gradu­ was—and is—an organization of scien­ ate student at the University of Cali­ tists who engage in advocacy. fornia at Davis, I heard Claire Kremen give a talk about her research on the What’s the best thing about your job? I economic value of pollination from na­ work with incredible people, and I love tive bees that thrived in wild habitat ad­ being able to work on a variety of con­ jacent to farms in Central California. I servation issues in many different areas found the research—and the economic of the country. arguments for conservation— compel­ What book are you currently reading? I just ling, and met with her afterward. When started The Book of Unknown Americans I expressed an interest in working to by Cristina Henríquez, which is the communicate research like hers to grow­ Multnomah County Library’s current ers and others who could benefit from “Everybody Reads” selection. it, she told me about the Xerces Society. Within a few months, I had joined Xer­ What do you do to relax? I like to paint, ces, read the entire Pollinator Conserva- go for walks, run, and soak in hot pools. tion Handbook, and began doing volun­ What music do you have on your iPod? A teer work for the pollinator program. random assortment that I’m not sure What made you want to work here? I was how to characterize simply. A few of my excited to find a conservation organiza­ favorite genres include country prior to tion that focuses on insects, and that about 1980, classical (especially stringed takes an evidence-based approach to instruments: I’m a huge fan of cello conservation. I appreciated that Xerces music), and American folk music.

26 WINGS XERCES NEWS

Xerces’ New Book: Gardening for Butterflies The Xerces Society is proud to announce design, install, and maintain a butterfly our latest book, Gardening for Butterflies: garden. The book also goes beyond the How You Can Attract and Protect Beauti- garden fence, with notes on ways to ful, Beneficial Insects. It was released this nurture butterflies in a range of environ­ spring by Timber Press, a publisher of ments such as parks, farms, corporate books on gardening and natural history. campuses, roadsides, and green roofs. Gardening for Butterflies starts from The design chapters contain lists of the premise that every can plant recommendations for different re­ help create an ideal landscape for but­ gions, and the chapter “Butterfly Plants terflies, and from there leads the reader of North America” offers illustrated pro­ through understanding what butterflies files of more than a hundred plants that need and how to provide for them. The will provide nectar for adult butterflies book is divided into sections that de­ and the nourishment that is essential for scribe the natural history of butterflies caterpillars. and moths, detail their habitat require­ Robert Michael Pyle, in his fore­ ments, and explain the practical steps to word, has this to say: “No matter your

SPRING 2016 27 starting point, this essential and wel­ of gardens. We are grateful to the many come book will help you bring about the photographers who graciously allowed garden you desire—for the butterflies, us to use their images. for yourself, and for the earth.” You can buy Gardening for Butterflies The pages of Gardening for Butterflies from us via our website or over the tele­ are enriched by more than 270 lovely phone, but you’ll also find the book at photographs and several illustrations bookstores and online retailers.

The DeWind Award: Investing in the Future of Conservation Our conservation and advocacy efforts exposure of milkweed plants to neo­ have always been rooted in science, nicotinoid insecticides when growing drawing from the work of university re­ in close proximity to agricultural fields, searchers to inform projects and guide and evaluating the effect of this expo­ our actions. As part of our commitment sure on monarch butterflies. to supporting the work of scientists, the The second recipient is Cameron Xer­ces Society each year grants two Joan Thomas, an MS student at Washington Mosenthal DeWind Awards to students State University’s Vancouver campus. engaged in research that will advance He is studying ant tending of Fender’s butterfly and moth conservation in the blue caterpillars and will measure the course of leading to a degree. It gives us associated biotic and abiotic factors. great pleasure to announce the recipi­ Cameron intends for his work to inform ents for the 2016 awards. habitat restoration efforts and vegeta­ Paola Olaya-Arenas, a PhD student tion management to benefit this feder­ at Purdue University, received her award ally protected butterfly. to support her project investigating the Congratulations to them both!

Signs of Hope for the Monarch Butterfly? With the California population of over­ southern Canada. This year, more than wintering monarch butterflies having a hundred Thanksgiving Count partici­ declined 74 percent since the late 1990s, pants visited 188 sites, at which they tal­ each winter finds us eagerly awaiting lied more than 292,000 monarchs. The reports of how they are faring. During a fact that this is more butterflies than three-week period centered on Thanks­ were counted last year gives us cautious giving, volunteers with the Xerces Soci­ optimism about the future, although ety’s Western Monarch Thanksgiving the average number of monarchs per site Count fan out to the overwintering sites has not grown significantly. along the California coast to count how There are other positive signs. Nota­ many monarchs have migrated there. bly, the fifteen sites that have been con­ Smaller and less well known than tinuously monitored every year since the overwintering sites in Mexico, Cali­ 1997 had the highest numbers of butter­ fornia’s sites play host to monarchs from flies in a decade; there were several sites, across the western United States and such as Berkeley’s Aquatic Park, that

28 WINGS The Xerces Society’s most recent count of monarchs overwintering in Califor- nia tallied some 292,000 butterflies. Photograph by Carly Voight. hosted overwintering monarchs for the spring and summer weather conditions first time; and still other sites were oc­ in the monarch’s U.S. and Canadian cupied that had not seen monarchs for breeding areas. Although the higher years. In Marin County, in the northern population figure is very good news, the extent of the overwintering range, two number of butterflies is still well below new sites each supported more than the target of 225 million monarchs over­ eight thousand butterflies. wintering in Mexico set by the U.S. Fish Mexico has also seen an increase and Wildlife Service. The fragility of the in the number of overwintering mon­ monarch population was underscored archs, according to the World Wildlife when a winter storm hit the overwinter­ Fund Mexico. The estimate of 150 mil­ ing sites in mid-March of this year. The lion butterflies is an increase from the impact of this is not yet clear because last two years (the two lowest years on the butterflies had begun leaving the record) but still far below a number that sanctuaries, but it is estimated that mil­ most scientists consider sustainable. lions of monarchs still at the sites died. Unlike the California count, the data in Despite the better population num­ Mexico are based on a measurement of bers for this winter, the monarch con­ the area of forest occupied by butterflies tinues to face threats and is far from in the sanctuaries. Four hectares (ten secure. One good year does not equal acres) were occupied this year; research­ recovery, and there is much work that ers estimate that there are approximate­ needs to be done to protect overwinter­ ly 37.5 million monarchs per hectare. ing sites, improve milkweed availability, The population in Mexico was ex­ and expand habitat in the butterfly’s pected to be up this winter due to good breeding areas.

SPRING 2016 29 The Island Marble Butterfly: Slipping Towards Extinction The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service an­ the Northwest Ecosystem Alliance in nounced in early April that the island submitting a petition requesting pro­ marble butterfly (Euchloe ausonides insu- tection. That petition was denied four lanus) is in danger of extinction, but pro­ years later, although the threats facing tection under the Endangered Species the island marble remained. Act is “precluded by higher priority list­ The butterfly’s population contin­ ing actions.” We are very disappointed ued to decline as it disappeared from by this decision. After a decade of falling site after site in Washington state’s San numbers, this butterfly survives at only Juan Islands, leading Xerces to submit a one site and has a population of just a second ESA petition in August 2012. In few hundred individuals. It is not clear its response to that petition, the USFWS what would be a higher priority. stated that the butterfly is “in danger of The Xerces Society has been work­ extinction or likely to become so in the ing to save the island marble for fifteen foreseeable future.” Despite these dire years. In December 2002, the Society circumstances, the agency declined to was joined by the Center for Biological provide the island marble with the pro­ Diversity, Friends of the San Juans, and tection that it deserves.

Sharing Knowledge Through Public Events Late winter, when many farming confer­ Eric Lee-Mäder presenting a keynote ences are held, is a busy time for our pol­ address at the 2016 MOSES (Midwest linator conservation program. A high­ Organic and Sustainable Education light this year was program co-­director Service) conference, the largest organic farming event in the United States. More than three thousand people were at the La Crosse Center in Wisconsin to hear Eric talk about the intersection of farming and wildlife conservation. His keynote can be seen on YouTube, at http://bit.ly/23FRvdi. During the coming months, Xer­ ces staff will lead many different events. Our day-long pollinator conservation short course continues to be highly popular; dates have already been set in Colorado, Pennsylvania, and Vermont this summer, and more will be added. In recent years, funding for our short The Xerces Society is launching a series of short courses on creating habitat to at- courses has come from SARE, the Sus­ tract beneficial insects such as lady bee- tainable Agriculture Research and Edu­ tles. Photograph by Sarah Foltz Jordan. cation program of the U.S. Department

30 WINGS of Agriculture. The pollinator courses of a strategy for managing crop pests. have been so well received that the Xer­ Conservation biocontrol short courses ces Society was honored to be the only are planned in Illinois and Vermont, organization ever to get grants from all with more to be added. four SARE regions. Remarkably, this has Information about these and other now occurred twice, and each of the events can be found on the events page four SARE regions are funding a new of our website (www.xerces.org/event); series of short courses on conservation we also post details on our Facebook biocontrol. These will cover the natural page. Alternatively, you can get registra­ history of beneficial insects, along with tion information by telephoning our of­ ways to employ them effectively as part fice at855 -232-6639.

Planned Giving, Your Legacy for Invertebrates A charitable bequest is one of the sim­ with your financial or legal advisor in plest ways to provide continuing sup­ order to choose a gift that works best port to the Xerces Society beyond your for you and your family. If you have lifetime. Your gift will have a lasting questions or would like to inform us of impact on the conservation of essential your plans, please complete our online invertebrates and help preserve these planned giving form at www.xerces.org/ creatures for future generations. donate/planned-giving, send an email We highly recommend that you to suzanne@­xerces.org, or call us at discuss your planned giving options 855-232-6639.

WINGS, Spring 2016 Volume 39, Number 1 Wings is published twice a year by the Xerces Society, an international, non­ profit or­ganization dedicated to protecting the diversity of life through the ­conservation of invertebrates and their habitat. A Xerces Society membership costs $35 per year (tax-deductible) and in­cludes a subscription to Wings; the magazine can also be downloaded from our website as a PDF. Copyright © 2016 by the Xerces Society. All rights reserved. Xerces Society Executive­ Director: Scott Hoffman Black. Editors: Scott Hoffman Black, John Laur­sen, and Matthew Shepherd. Design and Production­ : John Laursen. Printed on recycled paper. For information about membership and to learn about our conser­va­tion programs for native pollinators, endangered species, and aquatic inverte­ brates, as well as our efforts to reduce the impacts of pesticides,­ contact us: THE XERCES SOCIETY FOR INVERTEBRATE CONSERVATION 628 Northeast Broadway, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97232 toll-free 855-232-6639 fax 503-233-6794 [email protected] www.xerces.org

SPRING 2016 31 The vibrant colors and spectacular markings of the peacock ( io) sug- gest a creature from a tropical forest—but no, this butterfly can be found in temperate regions of Europe and Asia. A common and much-loved visitor to gardens, it lays its eggs on its caterpillar host plant, the com- mon nettle (). Photograph by Tony Hisgett, Flickr/CC2-BY.

THE XERCES SOCIETY FOR INVERTEBRATE CONSERVATION 628 Northeast Broadway, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97232

Board of Directors Scientific Advisors David Frazee Johnson May R. Berenbaum Karen Oberhauser President Paul R. Ehrlich Paul A. Opler Logan Lauvray Wendell Gilgert Dennis Paulson Vice President Boris Kondratieff Robert Michael Pyle Linda Craig Claire Kremen Michael Samways Treasurer John Losey Cheryl Schultz Sacha Spector Secretary Thomas Lovejoy Robbin Thorp Marla Spivak Scott E. Miller Paul Williams Rachael Winfree Gary Paul Nabhan E. O. Wilson Piotr Naskrecki

A $35 per year Xerces Society membership includes a subscription to Wings.

On the cover: Although a great deal of effort is put into protecting rare species of but- terflies, it is becoming increasingly obvious that even common and widespread species are in decline and need conservation efforts. The regal fritillary (Speyeria idalia), shown here drinking nectar from common milkweed ( syriaca), is a broadly distributed species whose numbers have fallen dramatically. Photograph by Bryan E. Reynolds.