Nestucca Bay National Wildlife Refuge Silverspot Recovery

USFWS Portland-based staff and partners from the Institute for Applied Ecology partnered with Nestucca Bay National Wildlife Refuge to plant early blue violets and pearly everlasting flowers on the refuge's Cannery Hill unit. These flower are native to the refuge's coastal prairie habitat. The project is part of a joint effort to aid in the recovery of the Oregon silverspot butterfly, a Federally threatened species. Ian Silvernail, from the Institute for Applied Ecology (IAE), describes the use of one of the main tools of the day, the dibble. IAE developed the overall coastal prairie recovery plan, which identified Nestucca Bay NWR as a potentially ideal location for the eventual reintroduction of the Oregon silverspot butterfly.