PETITION TO LIST THE QUINO CHECKERSPOT BUTTERFLY (Euphydryas editha quino) AS ENDANGERED UNDER THE CALIFORNIA ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT Photo credit: Robert A. Hamilton, Hamilton Biological CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY And ENDANGERED HABITATS LEAGUE June 29, 2020 FGC – 670.1 (3/94) NOTICE OF PETITION TO THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME COMISSION For action pursuant to Section 670.1, Title 14, California Code of Regulations (CCR) and sections 2072 and 2073 of the Fish and Game Code relating to listing and delisting endangered and threatened species of plants and animals. I. SPECIES BEING PETITIONED Common name: Quino checkerspot butterfly Scientific name: (Euphydryas editha quino) II. RECOMMENDED ACTION: List as endangered The Center for Biological Diversity and Endangered Habitats League submit this petition to list the Quino checkerspot butterfly as endangered throughout its range in California pursuant to the California Endangered Species Act (California Fish and Game Code §§ 2050 et seq.). This petition demonstrates that the Quino checkerspot butterfly clearly warrants listing based on the factors specified in the statute. III. AUTHOR OF PETITION Tara Cornelisse, PhD Center for Biological Diversity PO Box 11374 Portland, OR 97211-0374 503-283-5474 [email protected] I hereby certify that, to the best of my knowledge, all statements made in this petition are true and complete. Signature: Date: June 29, 2020 The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.6 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places. The Endangered Habitats League is a Southern California nonprofit regional conservation organization dedicated to ecosystem protection and sustainable land use. ii Table of Contents Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................2 Natural History ...........................................................................................................................3 Taxonomy ...............................................................................................................................3 Description ..............................................................................................................................3 Habitat and Host Plants............................................................................................................4 Life Cycle and Behavior ..........................................................................................................6 Larval Diapause ...................................................................................................................7 Adult Dispersal ....................................................................................................................7 Metapopulation Dynamics .......................................................................................................8 Population Trend, Distribution, and Abundance ..........................................................................9 Historic Population Trend, Distribution, and Abundance ....................................................... 11 Current Population Trend, Distribution, and Abundance ........................................................ 13 Riverside County ............................................................................................................... 16 San Diego County .............................................................................................................. 18 Factors Affecting the Ability of the Species to Survive and Reproduce ..................................... 18 The Present or Threatened Destruction, Modification, or Curtailment of its Habitat or Range 18 Development ...................................................................................................................... 18 Habitat Fragmentation ........................................................................................................ 27 Invasive Species ................................................................................................................. 30 Cannabis cultivation ........................................................................................................... 32 Livestock Grazing .............................................................................................................. 32 Recreation .......................................................................................................................... 32 Overutilization for Commercial, Recreational, Scientific, or Educational Purposes ................ 34 Other Natural or Manmade Factors Affecting its Continued Existence ................................... 35 Climate Change.................................................................................................................. 35 Disease or Predation .............................................................................................................. 37 The Inadequacy of Existing Regulatory Mechanisms and Impact of Existing Management Efforts ................................................................................................................................................. 37 Federal Regulations ............................................................................................................... 38 iii Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended .................................................................... 38 National Environmental Policy Act .................................................................................... 40 National Forest Management Act ....................................................................................... 40 Federal Land Policy and Management Act ......................................................................... 41 National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997 .............................................. 41 Sikes Act............................................................................................................................ 41 The Lacey Act.................................................................................................................... 42 Pesticide regulations .......................................................................................................... 42 State Regulations ................................................................................................................... 42 California Environmental Quality Act ................................................................................ 42 Natural Community Conservation Program ........................................................................ 43 Local Regulations .................................................................................................................. 43 Western Riverside County MSHCP .................................................................................... 43 San Diego County MSCP ................................................................................................... 45 Other HCPs ........................................................................................................................ 46 Captive Breeding and Reintroduction Project......................................................................... 47 Degree and Immediacy of Threats ............................................................................................. 47 Suggestions for Future Management and Recovery Actions ...................................................... 48 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 49 References ................................................................................................................................ 50 iv Executive Summary The Center for Biological Diversity and Endangered Habitats League submit this petition to list the Quino checkerspot butterfly (Euphydryas editha quino Behr) as endangered throughout its range in California pursuant to the California Endangered Species Act (CESA, California Fish and Game Code §§ 2050 et seq.). As outlined in this petition, without the protection of the CESA, the Quino checkerspot butterfly is highly likely to become further imperiled and go extinct in the very near future. The Quino checkerspot butterfly was once a common butterfly throughout Southern California but has lost over 75% of its habitat, largely due to sprawl development. The Quino checkerspot butterfly is now only known in 62 potential sites in Southern San Diego and South-western Riverside Counties; of those 62, the butterfly has been observed in only 33 sites (53.2%) in the last 10 years and all are threatened by climate change, habitat destruction, degradation, and fragmentation, invasive plants, drought, and/or fire. The Quino checkerspot butterfly exhibits of boom and bust metapopulation dynamics with an extended larval diapause that has allowed it to adapt and survive the variable precipitation of southern California. These natural history characteristics make protection of core sites and connectivity between sites especially imperative for the butterfly’s conservation and