Fate of Rare Butterfly May Rest in the Hands of These Scientists

The fate of an entire species of butterfly, called the Schaus swallowtail, may rest in the hands of researchers at the University of Florida who netted a female for the first time since the multi-agency group got a permit to do so last year.

The Schaus population has dropped so dramatically that in 2012 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued the school an emergency permit to collect the insect’s eggs, according to a press release issued from the school.

That effort ended, however, without a single female sighting last summer, despite the capture of four males. In contrast, the scientists have already been able to collect an egg from the female butterfly they caught on May 21, after which they released her.

The larva that has since hatched was taken to join other Schaus swallowtail larvae collected from the Keys.

The achievement, according to those involved, could mark a new era for the species.

“This single female could help bring the Schaus back from the brink,” said Jaret Daniels, a professor at the school’s Department of Entomology and Nematology and associate curator of lepidoptera at UF’s Florida Museum of Natural History. “The larva from her egg, combined with the other larvae we found in habitat preserved by Biscayne National Park, gives us the chance to help safeguard a portion of the remaining population.”

Once found throughout southeast Florida, several explanations remain for the decline of the Schuas, including drought, insecticides and habitat loss due to development.

It was federally listed as an endangered species in 1984 and, according to Biscayne National Park Superindendent Brian Carlstrom, the park is the butterfly’s last refuge.

In 1992, the university arguably saved the Schaus from extinction for the first time when the Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission granted the University of Florida museum researchers permission to capture females to start a breeding program.

Shortly thereafter, Hurricane Andrew nearly wiped out the entire wild population and researchers were later able to release thousands into the wild.

With the population again in peril, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service, FWC and the North American butterfly Assocation and the University of Florida agreed in 2010 to cooperate on intensive population surveys.

“This is a breakthrough,” said Mark Salvato, a Service biologist. “We’re backing the efforts of UF’s Florida Museum of Natural History because it has the expertise to manage such a delicate operation and because of its long commitment to saving the Schaus.”