The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) announced today that it is providing the long-term protection of the Endangered Species Act (Act) to a butterfly known as Mitchells satyr. This butterfly was given temporary protection under the emergency authority of the Act on June 25, 1991. That protection lasted for 240 days and expired on February 20, 1992.
During the period of temporary emergency protection, the Service began the normal process of adding Mitchells satyr to the list of threatened and endangered species. To ensure that all potentially interested parties were made aware of the proposed listing, a notice was published in the Federal Register; letters were sent to landowners, county commissions, conservation groups, and other agencies and organizations; and public notices were placed in local newspapers throughout the species range. The public was encouraged to comment and provide additional information on the proposal to list Mitchells satyr as an endangered species.
The Service received additional information about the butterfly and threats to its continued existence during this period. Nearly all comments strongly supported listing Mitchells satyr as endangered. The Service received no substantial data arguing against the need to provide long-term Federal protection to the butterfly.
The Mitchells satyr, known to the scientific community as Neonympha mitchellii mitchellii, was once found in Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, and New Jersey, and possibly a number of adjacent states. Today, it is known to survive at only 15 sites in Michigan and Indiana. The Mitchells satyr lives in wetland areas known as fens, which resemble bogs, but have alkaline waters. The wetland areas traditionally used by this butterfly have been eliminated mainly by conversion to other land uses. Mitchells satyr also suffers from over-collection by indiscriminate butterfly fanciers.
The endangered classification of Mitchells satyr makes it illegal to collect, or attempt to collect, the butterfly without a permit from the Service. It is also illegal to engage in interstate commerce in the species, even if the individual butterflies offered for sale or trade were collected before it was listed as an endangered species. In addition, all projects which receive Federal funding or require Federal permits will be reviewed to see if they might adversely impact Mitchells satyr or its habitat.
The Service will develop a recovery plan for Mitchells satyr to guide Federal and state agencies in actions needed to preserve and recover the species. All 15 known sites will be protected by Federal law, and searches for additional sites will continue. The butterfly will be studied to learn what can be done to increase its numbers.
Although wetland ecosystems have been lost at a alarming rate throughout the country, the fens that provide habitat for the Mitchells satyr have been lost at a higher rate than other wetlands. The Service hopes that efforts to conserve the Mitchells satyr will benefit these unique fen ecosystems and all of the unique species associated with them. The Service will try to restore some of the fens where the Mitchells satyr had been found historically and will try to introduce new populations of the Mitchells satyr at fens where conditions seem suitable.
For more information about the endangered Mitchells satyr butterfly, please write to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Division of Endangered Species, Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, 1 Federal Drive, Fort Snelling, Minnesota 55111-4056, or call 612/725-3276.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses more than 530 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies. For further information about the programs and activities of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes-Big Rivers Region, please visit our home page at: http://midwest.fws.gov
