Feature Story

Helping a Recovery Program Take Flight

Working with the Karner blue butterfly in Wisconsin

Photo by USFWS

Just over 20 years ago, the Karner blue butterfly (Lycaeidis melissa samuelis) and I became fast and inseparable friends. Our relationship began in 1992, after the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) proposed listing the butterfly as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Luckily, I was in the right place at the right time—of the seven states where the Karner blue was known to occur, Wisconsin boasted the largest population. So when I became the Service's first Endangered Species Coordinator in Wisconsin in 1993, I also became the Karner blue butterfly Recovery Coordinator. Things haven't been the same since.

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More about the Karner Blue Butterfly

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