A $2.4 million Canadian project aims to bring back three at-risk butterflies, including one gone for 30 years

The University of Guelph is leading a $2.4 million national project to save three butterflies at risk of disappearing from Canada, including one that has not been seen in the country for nearly 30 years, the university said on 19 October. The work is funded by an NSERC Alliance–Society grant and led by Dr. Ryan Norris of the Department of Integrative Biology.

Three butterflies, three problems

The mottled duskywing was once widespread in south-central Canada. Norris's team reintroduced it to Pinery Provincial Park in 2022, and it is now established there and near Long Point, Ontario. Canada's largest population lives on the land of Alderville First Nation, which is working with the researchers on how prescribed fire helps the species recover.

The frosted elfin disappeared from Canada in the 1990s but still lives in the northeastern United States. The Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory will develop methods for rearing it in captivity so it can be reintroduced. The third species, the curiously isolated hairstreak, was only recently identified and survives in a single small area of southern Alberta; the team plans to strengthen that one population.

“Canadians need examples showing that species decline is reversible.” — Dr. Ryan Norris, University of Guelph

Captive rearing, fire and rare habitats

The project combines captive rearing for reintroduction with the restoration of the rare habitats these butterflies need, which depend on specialized plants. Partners include the Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory, Wildlife Preservation Canada, the Wilder Institute at the Calgary Zoo, Parks Canada, Ontario Parks and Natural Resources Solutions Inc.

“It's incredibly rare to have the opportunity to bring a species back to Canada,” said Adrienne Brewster of the Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory. Project manager Jessica Linton of Natural Resources Solutions said the work is focused on saving species at risk from disappearing in Canada.

Toward a national butterfly recovery team

Students will be trained in husbandry, genetics and field ecology, and the team hopes the project will lay the groundwork for a national butterfly recovery team and a dedicated invertebrate conservation center. The university did not give an end date or a target year for the frosted elfin's return. More recovery stories are collected under species recovery.