Miami Blues - and other stories

Mark Walker MWalker at gensym.com
Mon Jul 8 00:08:54 EDT 2002


7/6-7/7/02
 
My Miami Blue right hand man, David Fine, has an upcoming family reunion -
so I took advantage of a scheduled business trip to Miami to take his baton
down to the Florida Keys.  The trip kept me from attending the Pacific Slope
meeting of the Lepidopterist Society, something I was seriously looking
forward to, but I figured that I couldn't justify traveling to Miami and NOT
get some MB work done.
 
Before I even begin, I must mention that the well organized and well
represented Miami Blue Butterfly Restoration Project (MBBRP) remains grossly
under funded.  Fortunately, there has been a lot of volunteered energy - and
that's great, because the work is being accomplished on behalf of an insect
that may be running out of time.  Funds are critically needed in order to do
the work that the state of Florida will insist upon once our recovery plan
has been accepted.  We also desperately need our brochures to be printed -
based on the fine work of John Calhoun, whose continued advice we greatly
need and appreciate.  Perhaps it's not necessary to mention that I am not in
the receiving line.  I'm just making a plea on behalf of the Miami Blue and
the folks who've been at this much longer than I.
 
Back to the keys:
 
The last time I was down here (6/15, ironically the weekend of the LepSoc
meeting), it poured down rain just about the whole weekend.  It's rained
most of this weekend, also.  Fortunately, the work that has to be done
(mostly searching for viable stands of foodplant) can be done just as well
in torrential downpour.  The remnant population of Miami Blues (Cyclargus
thomasi bethunebakeri) made another strong showing despite the
precipitation, also.  This population is so very, very healthy.  It has been
continuously brooded since we started studying it back in February -
procreating like little rabbits.  Perhaps it somehow knows that it is on the
brink of elimination, so it won't stop for anything that might interrupt its
ability to reproduce.  It is beginning to become criminal that we are not
doing something with the sheer numbers of individuals that are thriving at
this location.  I am writing up a proposal as we speak, and will be sharing
it after it is reviewed.
 
New suitable habitats were located on this trip, particularly in the lower
keys, but no new populations of the blue were identified.  In one
particularly fantastic hammock spot where Nickerbean abounds, I stared
intently across the plants for any sign of movement.  Soon my eyes focused
on two eyes focusing back at mine.  Yikes!  A 4 foot long Iguana was hanging
out on top of one of the trees supporting the Nickerbean, about 8 feet up in
the air, and was staring at me out of the sides of its head.  This thing
looked like something off of the Galapagos Islands - big puffy purple
throat, with dinosaur-like scales and spines.  I wish I had a camera.  No
blues.  Maybe they are all in his stomach.
 
Dave and I continue to fill out our matrix of spots to be searched.  We're
making good progress, even if we're not finding more Miami Blues.
 
On my way back up to Key Largo at 7:30 p.m. I stopped in Islamorada for some
refreshments.  I spotted another mosquito fogging vehicle, part of the
Florida Keys Mosquito Control District, as it painted every square inch of
road-or-driveway-accessible hammock edge with its lethal spray.  No wonder
we're not finding any Miami Blues.  Virtually every alternative habitat
we've identified is roadside accessible (save for a few isolated beaches).
Interestingly, the lone population is on state park lands, which is likely
NOT being sprayed.  Hmmmm.
 
Just another note on alternative habitats:  we've found some very, very good
ones.  But nothing that compares to the mass of Nickerbean that thrives at
the remnant site (the largest is probably around 30% of this biomass).  You
really do get a sense of why the insect has been able to hold on here...
We've also NOT found much Balloon Vine.  Are we sure this stuff was common
before?  If so, we've still not been able to answer why this plant has
virtually all but disappeared.  Being another edge dweller, I'm seriously
wondering if the spraying may not have played a role here as well...
 
Regarding ants:  we're documenting the obvious relationship between the
butterfly and a particular species of carpenter ant.  There will be more on
this in our report.  The ant has been present in about 70% of the Nickerbean
stands we've located.  We've carefully observed the ant behavior, and
apparently there's something that the plant provides that the ant enjoys
independent of the butterfly larva.  My guess is that the larvae provide an
additional, mobile, and concentrated source of this nutrient.  We can assume
for now that there is a mutual benefit, but until we get a chance to work
with larvae within a captive breeding program, we're not going to be able to
conclusively determine whether or not the larva critically depends on the
ant.
 
A few of the spots we've inspected are quite remote.  They've required some
pretty outrageous driving.  I'm sure Avis would NOT like to hear that.  I
covered some ground on this trip.  From Key West all the way to Black Point
Park on the mainland.  I will post a species list at the bottom.  The
activity was down, probably largely due to the incessant rain, but the
diversity was reasonable.  I didn't spend any time in slash pine habitat, so
a few of the usuals from that habitat are missing.
 
For those enjoying the recent LEPS-L thread, here's some more about "killing
bugs for fun":
 
Though I didn't find more Miami Blues, I did manage to get eaten alive by
mosquitoes and biting deer flies.  The spraying doesn't seem to be making
any difference - though the bugs were way worse up on the mainland (so maybe
it is?).  My face looks like a welted pin cushion.  Every time I got back
into the car (which was on the order of thousands of times), I allowed 20
mosquitoes to enter.  I want to tell you, I became quite vicious in my
treatment of these hitchhiking insects.  Before I drove on, I made sure that
every last one of them was squished beyond recognition.  As I was suffering
from bites upon bites upon bites, I had no patience for receiving additional
wounds while driving.  I confess that it became quite enjoyable to dispatch
the little b'stards.  So now I admit that I am guilty of "killing bugs for
fun".  But, you'll be pleased to know, I'm paying a heavy price for it all.
Tomorrow morning I have an important presentation to make, and I'm sure I'll
be quite the spectacle.
 
A list from the South (Monroe County):
 
Ascia monuste (Great Southern White)
Phoebis philea (Large Orange Sulphur)
Eurema lisa (Little Yellow)
Eurema nicippe (Sleepy Orange)
 
Strymon istapa (Columella Hairstreak)
Strymon melinus (Gray Hairstreak)
Brephidium isophtalma (Eastern Pygmy Blue)
Leptotes cassius (Cassius Blue)
Cyclargus thomasi (Miami Blue)
Hemiargus ceraunus (Ceraunus Blue)
 
Agraulis vanillae (Gulf Fritillary)
Dryas julia (Julia)
Heliconius charithonius (Zebra Longwing)
Junonia genoveva (Black Mangrove Buckeye)
Anartia jatrophae (White Peacock)
Danaus gilippus (Queen)
 
Polygonia leo (Hammock Skipper)
Erynnis zarucco (Zarucco Duskywing)
Pyrgus oileus (Tropical Checkered Skipper)
Wallengrenia otho (Southern Broken Dash)
Hylephila phyleus (Fiery Skipper)
Panoquina panoquin (Salt Marsh Skipper)
 
A list from the North (Dade County):
 
Papilio cresphontes (Giant Swallowtail)
Battus polydamus (Polydamus Swallowtail)
 
Ascia monuste (Great Southern White)
Phoebis sennae (Cloudless Sulphur)
Phoebis philea (Orange Barred Sulphur)
Phoebis agarithe (Large Orange Sulphur)
Eurema daira (Barred Yellow)
Eurema lisa (Little Yellow)
Eurema dina (Dina Sulphur)
Nathalis iole (Dainty Sulphur)
 
Leptotes cassius (Cassius Blue)
Hemiargus ceraunus (Ceraunus Blue)
 
Agraulis vanillae (Gulf Fritillary)
Dryas julia (Julia)
Vanessa atalanta (Red Admiral)
Junonia coenia (Buckeye)
Anartia jatrophae (White Peacock)
Limenitis archippus (Viceroy)
Marpesia petreus (Ruddy Daggerwing)
Danaus gilippus (Queen)
Danaus eresimus (Soldier)
 
Urbanus dorantes (Dorantes Longtail)
Pyrgus oileus (Tropical Checkered Skipper)
Hylephila phyleus (Fiery Skipper)
Nastra neamathla (Neamathla Skipper)
Larema accius (Clouded Skipper)
 
Mark Walker
 
 
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