John Ball Zoo and its conservation partners have made significant progress in the conservation of one of the world’s rarest butterflies— the Poweshiek skipperling. The Zoo and several partners came together on “captive rearing” of the species and this season has released more than 1,200 of the endangered species into the wild this year.
“We are incredibly proud our work to conserve the Poweshiek skipperling is yielding such positive results for the species,” said Bill Flanagan, conservation manager at John Ball Zoo. “The Poweshiek is a tiny species, but it’s one piece of biodiversity that supports life on our planet, and a great indicator of how changes in the environment are impacting many of the species in the same areas.” The Zoo works alongside the David Pavlik, research assistant at the Haddad Lab at Michigan State University, Minnesota Zoo, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and other organizations involved in the Poweshiek Skipperling International Partnership to help repopulate the Poweshiek skipperling, which was once abundant across prairies of upper Midwest States and central Canadian provinces and is now only found in a handful of sites. Land managers for releases include the Michigan Nature Association and Springfield Township in Oakland County.
Poweshiek skipperling breeding season at John Ball Zoo is winding down and caterpillar rearing season is beginning. This year, the Zoo and its partners were able to breed more than 45 pairs of Poweshieks at the Zoo.
The conservation work is yielding amazing results, as wild populations have been reestablished in places where they have not been observed for many years. Population decline is due to multiple factors, including the use of pesticides, habitat loss and climate change.
“The results of the breeding and release programs and concurrent habitat management activities have been incredible. We now have a healthy number of Poweshiek skipperlings to release back into the wild to continue boosting existing populations and to start expanding their distribution back to historically occupied areas” said Tamara Smith, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, lead recovery biologist for the butterfly.
Minnesota Zoo is also working to conserve Poweshiek skipperlings through captive rearing and breeding, in which an animal is raised under human care so when it’s released in the wild, it has a higher likelihood of survival. John Ball Zoo and Minnesota Zoo coordinate extensively to help ensure genetic diversity of the species and have had several egg exchanges to expand their populations.
“These little butterflies have big stories to tell,” said Cale Nordmeyer, Minnesota Zoo butterfly biologist. “Through our rearing efforts, we are helping create an insurance population for what’s considered one of the most endangered butterflies in the world. Our hope is that we can continue to build on these efforts with our partners to stabilize and eventually re-establish populations across northern prairies.”
John Ball Zoo is also launching a new experience to help guests engage directly with Michigan’s butterfly species and spark interest in their conservation. A new interactive experience called Backyard Butterflies will allow guests to engage with native butterflies while guided by Zoo staff. This new experience is now open daily and is free of charge for all guests.
Funding for this work was provided from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative through U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Threatened and Endangered Species Template.
The Poweshiek Skipperling International Partnership is just one project John Ball Zoo is involved in to conserve wildlife and wild places locally and around the world. Learn more about the Zoo’s involvement in conservation on its website. For a glimpse of the team in action, check out the video at this link.
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