Covering the butterfly effect

With about 90 butterfly species to call our own, a conservation group is hoping the public will participate in the first comprehensive Maritime Butterfly Atlas.

This five-year initiative, funded through Environment Canada's EcoAction Community Funding Program, is soliciting help from both established conservation scientists and amateur naturalists to put the atlas together.

"This is an effort to get a better understanding of the range, distribution and abundance of our various butterfly species so we can better assess their individual conservation value," said John Klymko, a zoologist with the Atlantic Canada Conservation Data Centre in Sackville, N.B.

The study will help identify what species are in danger or rare, and what species are in need protection. The study is asking participants to take photographs or collect specimens of butterflies they encounter, that will become part of the insect collection at the Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History. The specimens will be used to provide proof the species existed.

"By providing a specimen to identify a population, especially for a rare species, in the long run you will be doing that population a much, bigger favour than not collecting one at all, because you'll be providing proof that it is in fact here," Klymko said.

The 90 butterfly species in the Maritimes, includes those that have only been recorded a few times and probably migrated here by mistake, and Maritime regulars like monarchs.

Monarchs are not one of the species to be collected as part of the atlas as they have been federally designated as a species of federal concern. The Maritime Ringlet is also federally endangered and can only be collected with a permit, however photographs are acceptable.

"Because they are a species at risk, we are going to encourage people to just submit photos of monarchs, as opposed to a specimen," he said.

Butterfly specimens can be analyzed for stable isotopes, which can be used to answer important ecological questions, such as determining migratory routes.

Klymko said the main goal in the establishing a butterfly atlas is to get a better understanding of our butterfly species, which are all ranked according to their rarity now, but the confidence in some of the data is low.

"We don't know for certain just how rare some of things are because there has never been a systematic survey for them. So, by developing a much more robust data set, we can say with much more confidence what the conservation status of all these species are," he said.

The atlas will ensure appropriate data for butterflies is available for informed conservation decision-making and provide data to rank the conservation status of butterflies today, and compare today's populations with those of the past and future.

"By identifying those species that are of concern and protecting their habitats, we can then protect the habitats of lesser known ones. There are a lot of other insects we know very little about," Klymko said.

Klymko will be hosting workshops to further explain the atlas undertaking, and instruct participants how to collect specimens.

The Halifax workshop is scheduled for May 1 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Nova Scotia Museum of Natural History. Participants can register for the free workshop through the museum. For more information about the atlas, contact Klymko at jklymko@mta.caor call (506) 364-2660 or go to http://accdc.com/butterfly atlas/home. html.