Our Conservation and Research team is celebrating another successful field season of releasing 175 critically endangered Poweshiek skipperling butterflies to the Manitoba Tall Grass Prairie Preserve (MTGPP). Our team also collected over 1,500 eggs in preparation for next year's release and expanded the use of environmental DNA techniques to monitor wild populations.

"We are very excited and motivated by the success achieved this year in all parts of the program," said Kirstyn Eckhardt, Conservation Programs Manager, Assiniboine Park Conservancy. "The results are encouraging and a testament to many years of work, research, and collaborative effort."

Kirstyn Eckhardt, Conservation Programs Manager, with a Poweshiek skipperling ready to be released at a reintroduction site.

The species, once bountiful across the prairies, experienced abrupt population declines during the 1990s and 2000s. Contributing factors likely include habitat loss, pesticide use, extreme weather events, and climate change. The MTGPP in the RM of Stuartburn is the only location in Canada where the Poweshiek skipperling can still be found.

In our team's eighth consecutive year of releasing Poweshiek skipperlings, a cumulative total of 719 butterflies have been released into the wild.

This year's breeding success was primarily attributed to our team's adjustments to Poweshiek mating, which increased the number of breeding pairs and resulted in a 160% increase in egg collection when compared to last year. The newly hatched caterpillars will spend the winter in an incubator at the Zoo, continue their growth in the spring, and be released as adults next summer.

The APC team also trialled a new method of detecting Poweshiek skipperling this year, known as environmental DNA (eDNA) sampling. This technique involves collecting DNA naturally shed by the target species into its environment.

Poweshiek skipperling eggs on Prairie Dropseed grass. Photo credit: Kirstyn Eckhardt

"Over the last decade or so, environmental DNA sampling has served as an efficient tool to detect and monitor species in aquatic habitats, but it is still in the early stages of being used in terrestrial habitats, especially targeting insects," said Brooklynne Keber, Conservation and Research Specialist (Genetics and Genomics), Assiniboine Park Conservancy. "This pilot project is in the early stages, but we hope that by testing multiple sampling approaches in the lab, we can identify an effective method of eDNA sampling that could be used to detect Poweshiek skipperling in the wild."

In addition to the success of the releases and egg retrieval, for the second consecutive year, wild-born Poweshiek skipperling were observed at a reintroduction site, where they were released for the first time in 2023. Adult butterflies have also been observed over a wider area and further from the release locations, suggesting that the wild populations are naturally expanding their ranges.

A released Poweshiek skipperling on a Black-eyed Susan. Photo credit: Steven Sauve

Since 2018, we have collaborated with the Nature Conservancy of Canada on releasing Poweshiek skipperling in the MTGPP, where they are actively protecting and restoring the tallgrass prairie habitat essential to the species' survival and recovery.

During our field season, for the third consecutive year, community members from the RM of Stuartburn, located near the MTGPP, were invited to participate in a Poweshiek skipperling release. Community releases like these can inspire those in the area to take small but impactful initiatives to help support the local wildlife.

While we may not all live in an area where Poweshiek skipperling are found, we can all contribute to helping wildlife flourish in our own neighbourhoods by planting pollinator-friendly native plants, supporting conservation efforts, and reducing our use of pesticides.

Learn more about the Poweshiek skipperling and how you can help us protect and preserve this precious butterfly species on our website.