In terms of getting good photographs of butterflies, I was not given many gifts by nature.
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The Bay Checkerspot Butterfly
These photos were taken by me on Mother’s Day last Sunday when I was up in the Ridge Winery having a celebration drink with my family. While snapping these shots of this beautiful butterfly focusing on its feeding, I thought to myself: It’s about time I get lucky with some butterflies!! I didn’t realize how lucky I was till I was using some of my photos to search for the butterfly‘s name online – This is a U.S. Federally threatened species: The Bay Checkerspot Butterfly!
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The Bay Checkerspot Butterfly drinking nectar
The Bay Checkerspot is a butterfly endemic to the San Francisco Bay region of California.
According to the web, Since the 1980s the population of checkerspots has been in serious decline. Because this particular subspecies is so well studied, the decline was quickly recognized, which led relatively quickly to its federally threatened status designation in 1987.
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Do you know the plant the Bay Checkerspot Butterfly is feeding on?
Like other endangered and threatened species of butterfly in and around the San Francisco Bay Area the checkerspot is faced with rapid human development of areas once considered prime habitat. Development and the proliferation of invasive species, exotic non-natives that naturalize in the area, are two of the three most grave threats to this and several other species of butterfly. The threat to the butterfly that is likely greatest comes from the increasing emission of nitrogen in California.
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The Bay Checkerspot Butterfly’s Left Wing is missing a small piece
Nitrogen effect (per Wikipedia)
One of the interesting dynamics of conservation of this butterfly is associated with increased nitrogen through air pollution. Increased nitrogen increases the fertility of serpentine soils, soils naturally low in nitrogen. This increased fertility allows invasive plants to thrive and exclude the nectar sources that the Bay checkerspot needs. This is where moderate grazing brings help to the threatened checkerspot. In a large metapopulation south of San Jose, removal of cattle from grasslands that the butterfly inhabited led to a significant decrease in the butterfly population because grazing leads to a net export of nitrogen as the cattle are removed for slaughter after eating the plants of the grasslands. In this way, moderate grazing enhances the butterfly‘s chance for survival.
I am part of the problem that threatens this beautiful butterfly’s survival. I drive a big SUV. Besides having on my property eight California Oak trees that’s not a source of nectar, I can’t name of any plants in my garden that is native to California.
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The Bay Checkerspot Butterfly
Time to do some homework of what the Bay Checkerspot Butterfly likes to feed on and start planting them…