To initiate a statewide citizen scientist monitoring network to survey the health of butterfly populations on select protected land areas encompassing the many diverse natural communities throughout Florida

Project Goal

• Number of imperiled species continues to increase• State and Federal agency support is limited• Data lacking or out of date on most taxa

– Particularly for distribution, phenology, and abundance

• Retard effective preemptive conservation and management actions

• Provide ideal citizen science and environmental education initiative

• Enhance ecotourism opportunities (watchable wildlife) in Florida

Need for Monitoring

Project Origin• Address key conservation

priorities– Meet listed species recovery needs

– Identify declining taxa

– Compare sites and management practices

– Promote butterfly conservation, education and outreach

– Develop resources for land managers

– Increase public involvement in science and conservation

• Expand on existing partnerships with AZA, BFCI, FWC, etc.

Project Objective #1

• Develop and maintain a research database– Provide FWC, FNAI, land managers and scientists with initial baseline

information and continuing trend data on species occurrence and relative abundance

• Inform recovery actions

• Identify potential candidate species

• Track temporal changes in abundance or range

• Record tropical vagrants or new colonists

• Identify environmental threats

• Evaluate habitat management actions

• Evaluate species recovery efforts

• Assess impact of catastrophic events (fire, drought, hurricanes, etc,)

flbutterflies.net

Project Objective #2

• Expand partnerships with– AZA-member facilities – Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission– Florida Natural Areas Inventory– Department of Environmental Protection– IFAS Extension agents

to recruit, train and provide opportunities for public volunteers and institution/agency staff members to become directly involved with on-the-ground conservation efforts

– Engage institution membership– Utilize available conservation land holdings– Provide opportunities for staff to learn new techniques, interact with members, and use

resulting data to develop or strengthen on-site conservation and education programming– Low cost to institution

University of Florida

AZA

BFCI

FWC

FNAI

Zoological Institutions

Conservation Lands

Citizen Scientists& Staff

Training

Partners Monitors

Data Collection

Florida Butterfly Monitoring Network Organizational Chart

Training involves in-class and field tutorials; expanding to distance training via web

Methods• Use “Pollard Walk" surveys

- Recorder and Observer

• Employ fixed travel routes during counting

• Easy to delineate and use

• Data subject to more rigorous statistical analysis data as counts are conducted in a much more uniform manner with respect to area covered and time spent

• Fixed transects enable subsequent or concurrent study of multiple factors (e.g., floral and faunal variables on the same transect).

• Fixed location enables frequent replication and confident longitudinal monitoring

Limitations:

• Fixed location means some localized, sedentary species may never appear in a count • Unable to account for habitat changes

Methods• Paired recorder and observer

-Match more experienced individuals with less experienced ones

• Learn to ID 25 butterflies in each project year

• Only record “certain ID’s” – No guessing

• Photo documentation required for “questionable” taxa

• Can use net to temporarily capture and ID specimens

• AZA institutions serve as key project hubs for monitoring, recruitment and training

• Surrounding natural and conservation lands are surveyed

• Current site partner institutions include:- Brevard Zoo- Central Florida Zoo- Disney’s Animal Programs- Lowry Park Zoo- Miami Metro Zoo- Jacksonville Zoo- Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Office of Recreational Services

• Additional Survey Locations:- Camp Bayou Outdoor Learning Center, Merritt Island NWR, Florida Forever lands, EELS Maritime Hammock, Ahhochee Hill Sanctuary, Cockroach Bay Preserve, Brevard Museum, Ulumay Wildlife Sanctuary, Lori Wilson Park, Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve, Sweetwater Park, Chinsegut Nature Center, Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park, San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park, Bahia Honda State Park, and others….

Overview

• UF Florida Museum of Natural History• UF/IFAS Extension• National 4-H

Funded by National Science Foundation (ESI-0406173)

Collaborators

PI/PD – Betty A. Dunckel, Ph.D Co-PI – Joy C. Jordan Co-PI – Jaret C. Daniels, Ph.D. Co-PI – Thomas C. Emmel, Ph.D. Co-PI – Mark E. Hostetler, Ph.D.

• A youth-centered inquiry-based science program

• Targets youth in grades 4-8

What is WINGS?

• Engage youth in science.

• Youth learn about butterflies and their role in the environment, and our connection with them.

• Youth contribute to authentic, hands-on collaborative citizen-science research

• Engage youth in guided and youth-initiated inquiry.

Project Goals

Project Butterfly WINGSincludes:

1. Youth Guide2. Leader Guide3. Interactive web site

WINGS Schedule

• November 2004 – Project start-up

• 2009 – Introduced as one of the first SET

Curricula by National 4-H (Science, Engineering and Technology)