A University of Guelph project to revive an endangered butterfly species has made a big, fluttery leap forward.
Integrative biology professor Dr. Ryan Norris says nine mottled duskywings were spotted in Pinery Provincial Park on Lake Huron this past week, the first time the butterflies have been seen in the southwestern Ontario preserve in 30 years.
The sighting means that at least some of the butterflies that Norris and a team of collaborators reintroduced to the park last year have successfully overwintered.
“This is a really exciting milestone in our work,” said Norris, a professor in the College of Biological Science. “No one has ever successfully reintroduced a butterfly species in Ontario, so to see these individuals survive their first winter is fantastic.”
Read more at University of Guelph
Photo Credit: Bill Bouton via Wikimedia Commons
