Rescuing+Rare+Butterflies

St. Francis Satyr
Maya Lin 3B

The guest speakers at this presentation addressed the endangerment of the rare species, St. Francis Satyr, a butterfly native to North Carolina. This species is suffering due to habitat loss, the biggest factor leading to species decline across the globe. St. Francis Satyrs live in open areas of land, but without the disturbances such as fire or lightning or even beavers, it is hard to maintain these open habitats. At Fort Bragg, management produces controlled fires that help maintain open spaces for the butterfly species to live, therefore making this area a perfect habitat. Other actions taken in order to protect this rare species are creating controlled nurseries and taking population surveys to record the restoration.

If not helped by organizations like the one presenting at the Teen Science Cafe, this species would have gone extinct due to habitat loss. This factor is the most impactful in terms of species extinction, making the conservation efforts a main focus in environmental science. In order to protect ecosystems all across the globe, combating habitat loss and species extinction is key.