Oarisma poweshiek

Poweshiek skipperling
Conservation status
	; Critically Imperiled (NatureServe)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Hesperiidae
Genus:	Oarisma
Species:	O. poweshiek
Binomial name
	Oarisma poweshiek; (Parker, 1870)[1]
Synonyms
	Hesperia powesheik; Thymelicus powesheik[2];

Oarisma poweshiek, the Poweshiek skipperling, is a North American butterfly in the family Hesperiidae (skippers), subfamily Hesperiinae (grass skippers). The range of this species in Canada is restricted to southeastern Manitoba, and in the United States it historically ranged from the Dakotas to the southern Lower Peninsula of Michigan.[3]

Description

Coloured dark brown on the upperside with an orange along the costa. The underside of the hindwings are dark grey with white veins.[3]

Wingspan is from 24 to 30 mm.[3]

Behaviour

The Poweshiek skipperling emerges in late June or early July and exists in the adult form for approximately a two-week period. During this time the skipperling nectars on a suite of flowers, mates and lays eggs. The larvae feed on graminoid plant species that possibly vary throughout the distribution of this species.[3]

Conservation status

The Poweshiek skipperling was a common prairie butterfly prior to 2005, but suffered a population crash between 2005 and 2015. The Poweshiek skipperling has a NatureServe ranking of G1 or critically imperiled[4] It is threatened by degradation and modification of its native prairie habitat by overgrazing, invasive species, and conversion to cropland.[5] This species was awarded endangered status under the United States Endangered Species Act in 2014[5] after gaining candidate status in 2011.[6] The Poweshiek skipperling was assessed as threatened by Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) in 2003, then, in 2005, the species was added to Schedule 1 with the status threatened under the Species at Risk Act (SARA), in Canada. In 2014, the species was reassessed as endangered by COSEWIC.[7] In February 2019, the SARA status was changed to endangered.[8]

In 2018, the Minnesota zoo began efforts to rear them in captivity, for release in the wild.[9][10]

References

Parker, H. W. 1870. A new Hesperian. The American Entomologist and Botanist 2:271-272.
Oarisma, funet.fi
Poweshiek Skipperling, Butterflies of Canada
Comprehensive Report Species - Oarisma poweshiek. (n.d.) NatureServe http://www.natureserve.org.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 2014, October 24. Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Threatened Species Status for Dakota Skipper and Endangered Species Status for Poweshiek Skipperling. Federal Register.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 2011, October 26. Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Review of Native Species That Are Candidates for Listing as Endangered or Threatened; Annual Notice of Findings on Resubmitted Petitions; Annual Description of Progress on Listing Actions. Federal Register.
COSEWIC. 2014. COSEWIC assessment and status report on the Poweshiek SkipperlingOarisma poweshiekin Canada. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ottawa. xi + 43 pp.(www.registrelep-sararegistry.gc.ca/default_e.cfm).
Department of Environment and Natural Resources of Canada. (n.d.). Poweshiek Skipperling (Oarisma poweshiek) - Species search - Species at risk registry. https://species-registry.canada.ca/index-en.html#/species/796-333.
http://mnzoo.org/conservation/minnesota/saving-minnesotas-prairie-butterfly-heritage/
"FLITTING AWAY", Kieth Methney, The Detroit Free Press, July 13 2018, page A1

External links

Abdel-Razzaq, L. (November 17, 2013). "Michigan could be last hope for rare butterfly, feds say". The Detroit News.
NatureServe. 2014. Oarisma poweshiek. NatureServe Explorer.