Butterfly Restoration Project
Since 2009 we have been working at the north end of Swan Lake to remove noxious weeds and restore maritime prairie habitat to bring back the endangered Taylor’s Checkerspot Butterfly and, we hope, other critically threatened butterfly species. We are planting micro-habitat plots, experimenting with various larval and nectaring host plants favored by the butterfly, and monitoring to see whether our plantings can survive the foraging of Eastern Cottontail Rabbits.
The Taylor’s Checkerspot once was widespread in the San Juan Islands, southern Vancouver Island and the surrounding islands of British Columbia, as well as on coastal and inland grasslands, open prairies and gravelly outwash areas of Puget Sound, Washington and Oregon. With a wingspan of less than 2-1/2 inches, it is an orange, black and white butterfly that flies in the spring in the Puget Sound lowlands.
The native grasslands it favors are particularly vulnerable to agricultural use, urban development and the encroachment of trees and invasive plants. Such grasslands once were estimated at 250,000 acres in Western Washington. Today only a few acres remain. Butterflies are susceptible to pesticides, recreation and farm grazing. According to one recent study, only 14 sites remain in the Pacific Northwest where Checkerspot populations exceed 50 individuals. Because of the Checkerspot’s sensitivity to changes in its habitat, it is considered a keystone species, an environmental indicator for the health of entire ecosystems.
As of summer 2010, it appears the rabbits will not eat Plectritis congesta, commonly called Seablush. This is a pretty, pink annual that grows with ease in our watershed. We are encouraging our neighbors to plant Seablush in their gardens to help the Checkerspot Butterfly recover. We typically order seeds in the fall for the following gardening season. Seeds are not commercially available because the plants are rare. Please contact us if you wish to wish to order these seeds for yourself.