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WINGS ESSAYS ON INVERTEBRATE CONSERVATION THE XERCES SOCIETY SPRING 2018 CONTENTS Grasslands are among the most threatened habitats; easy to build upon or plow up, they are often the first to go. This issue ofWings looks at the beautiful wildlife that grasslands support, and some of the management problems faced by conservationists. Can Robobees Solve the Pollination Crisis? Eric Lee-Mäder and Scott Hoffman Black Page 3. Keeping the Lights Burning: The Status of Fireflies in the United States and Canada Candace Fallon Fireflies, longtime sources of nighttime delight for children, seem to be gradually slipping away as their habitats, particularly wet grasslands, disappear. Page 5. The Striking Beauty of Oklahoma’s Butterflies Ray Moranz The state of Oklahoma sits near the center of the continental United States, and consequently its prairies and woodlands host a diverse range of butterflies.Page 11. Ups and Downs of English Chalk Grasslands Matthew Shepherd Think of England, and you may picture rounded hills dotted with sheep. Centu- ries of grazing have resulted in grasslands that support a great array of plants and butterflies. Page 17. Conservation Spotlight Iowa’s Living Roadway Trust Fund helps to conserve the state’s prairie habitat. Page 22. Invertebrate Notes A roundup of new books and recent research. Page 23. Staff Profile Meet Candace Fallon, an endangered species conservation biologist. Page 25. Xerces News Updates on Xerces Society projects and successes. Page 26. 2 WINGS Can Robobees Solve the Pollination Crisis? Eric Lee-Mäder and Scott Hoffman Black Recently, Walmart filed a patent appli- long way from having technology that cation for drones that are designed to will accomplish the task that bees al- pollinate crops by carrying pollen from ready perform. one plant to another, detecting flower And the problem is more complex locations with sensors and cameras. than just crops. At least 85 percent of all Although Walmart is not the first or- terrestrial plant species either require ganization to explore such an idea as a or strongly benefit from some form of way to address the alarming decline in animal pollination, and the idea of ro- honey-bee populations, it seems highly botic pollinators ignores the many wild unlikely that “robobees” could actually plants in meadows, prairies, hedgerows, provide a solution. and forests. Focusing solely on crop pol- First, in crop plants alone there are lination and failing to take the pollina- myriad varieties of flower shapes, sizes, tion of native plants into account may and arrangements. For a sense of this well lead to a deterioration in the plant diversity, just think of squash flowers, communities that make up the very fab- sunflowers, apple blossoms, and tomato ric of our environment. flowers. Bees have coevolved with plants A further issue is that the western to collect and transport pollen efficient- honey bee is just one of the thousands ly. How many different types of drones of species of bees—not to mention the would one farmer need? We are a very flies, beetles, butterflies, and many How many robotic drones would it take to replace the honey bees in just this almond orchard alone? Photograph by the Xerces Society / Matthew Shepherd. SPRING 2018 3 other species that make up the com- panies to restore habitat for pollinators munity of pollinators. Developing a and beneficial insects, protected from technological substitute for honey-bee pesticides, on large-scale farms. The pollination barely scratches the surface results are farm operations that increas- of global plant–pollinator interactions. ingly produce and sustain their own In fact, a recent study, published in Sci- wild resident pollinator populations. ence by a team led by Dr. Rachel Winfree The second opportunity, provid- of Rutgers University found that to pro- ing a broader diversity of food choices, vide pollination of crops alone we need would also be a powerful model for re- a large diversity of bees, both common engineering our overly simplified food species and less common ones. system. Products made from buckwheat, An essay by Dr. Claire Kremen of flax, carob, lentils, jackfruit, grain ama- the University of California Berkeley in ranth, and countless other less common the same issue of Science underscores the crop species typically require few pesti- changes we need to make to ensure that cides, and many are highly productive our landscapes can support the diversity food sources for bees and other benefi- and numbers of bees our crops require. cial wildlife. A food system designed for Kremen points out that it is vital that such choices would inherently be built we move away from monocultures and upon a biologically diverse and resilient fencerow–to-fencerow cultivation to- landscape. These ecologically beneficial ward regenerative farming that incor- models are already proven in agrofor- porates hedgerows, flowering strips, and estry, alley cropping, silvopasture, and other conservation practices to build other diversified farm systems. More- soil fertility and support much-needed over, such models arguably provide pest control and pollination services. people with delightful food that is both Another aspect of this discussion healthier and more interesting. should focus on the cost, and whether The flower-rich meadows that sup- robotic bees are the best investment— port bees, butterflies, and most other or even a reasonably effective one—at a pollinators bring benefits beyond crop time when the threats are real and seem pollination. If we consider the fact that to be growing. What could be achieved an aesthetically beautiful wildflower by funding sustainable solutions rather habitat that supports wildlife, seques- than pursuing technological approach- ters carbon, and produces oxygen can be es? As one of the world’s largest retailers, established in most parts of the United Walmart has global procurement power States for around ten cents per square that could provide incredible opportu- foot, then the best return on investment nities, both to restore pollinator popu- is clear. Rather than build drones that lations by encouraging biologically di- don’t do any of those things, we should verse and regenerative agriculture prac- plant meadows. tices of its suppliers, and to promote a more diverse range of food choices. The first of these has an existing Scott Hoffman Black is Xerces’ executive precedent. The Xerces Society works director. Eric Lee-Mäder is co-director of closely with several major food com- the pollinator conservation program. 4 WINGS Keeping the Lights Burning: The Status Of Fireflies in the United States and Canada Candace Fallon Fireflies. If you spent any time as a child the garden. They have an almost magi- in the eastern United States, it is likely cal quality of lighting up the dark. that the word immediately conjures up Fireflies are not flies but are actually memories of dusky summer nights, soft beetles, in the family Lampyridae. They flashes in the understory, bare feet on use bioluminescent light to communi- warm grass. Fireflies are celebrated all cate with each other, primarily to attract over the world. They are found in art, mates, but sometimes to signal alarm, or literature, and cultural origin stories. send a warning, or even to attract food— To some, they merely signal the start in the form of other fireflies! The light of summer. To others, they symbolize comes from an organ on the underside the souls of the departed, or bad luck, of the abdomen, in which oxygen reacts or hope in the darkness. Unlike many with a light-emitting biological pigment other insects, fireflies give off a friendly called luciferin in the presence of an en- vibe. They do not sting or bite. They will zyme called luciferase to emit photons, not eat your crops or become a pest in elementary particles of light. Fireflies create light in a pair of abdominal segments. They flash with distinctive patterns to attract a mate of the right species. Photograph of common eastern fireflyPhotinus ( pyralis) by ivkuzmin / iStock. SPRING 2018 5 Fireflies are found in many coun- firefly, it is probably because many of tries, but particularly in tropical cli- our western species are active during the mates. More than two thousand species day, potentially communicating with have been described, over 160 of which pheromones rather than light. In other can be found in the United States and species, the larvae or adult females may Canada. More species are being discov- glow, but adult males do not produce ered and described each year. Here in light. Take, for example, the Douglas the United States, Florida and Georgia fir glowworm (Pterotus obscuripennis), are our most species-rich states, boast- whose larvae and flightless females can ing more than fifty each. As someone be found casting a soft, greenish light who grew up in Florida, this was news in its namesake forests. Flashing species to me. I do not have a single memory of may be rare west of the Rockies, but they fireflies until my family moved to South can still be found in some pockets. Only Carolina, where fireflies gathered in our a few years ago, researchers in Utah were yard every summer evening at dusk. excited to find populations of flashing Where were those Florida fireflies? Did fireflies in marshy areas of the desert— I live in places that were too urbanized? living confirmation after a thirty-year Were our resident fireflies more active search. late at night, when I was tucked away in Fireflies live in a wide variety of bed? How could I have missed them? habitats, although many of these tend If you have similarly thought that to have one particular feature in com- you live in a place devoid of fireflies, you mon: moisture. They can be found in may be surprised to learn that fireflies wetlands, swamps, riparian areas, aban- actually occur in all of the lower forty- doned fields, forests, chaparral, and eight states and in many Canadian prov- scrublands.