KARNER BLUE

The 'Karner Blue', ''Lycaeides melissa samuelis'', is a small, blue butterfly found in small areas of New Jersey, the Great Lakes region, southern New Hampshire, and the Capital District region of New York. The butterfly, whose lifecycle depends on the wild blue lupine flower (Lupinus perennis), is classified as an endangered species. In May 2000, the Canadian Species at Risk Act listed the Karner Blue as being extirpated in Canada.
Local conservation efforts, concentrating on replanting large areas of blue lupine which have been lost to development (and to fire suppression, which destroys the open, sandy habitat required by blue lupine), are having modest success at encouraging the butterfly's repopulation. The Karner Blue, (''Lycaeides melissa samuelis''), is the official state butterfly of New Hampshire. The Necedah National Wildlife Refuge in central Wisconsin is home to the world's largest population of Karner Blues, who benefit from its vast area of savannah and extensive lupine.
The Karner Blue was first identified and named by novelist and lepidopterist Vladimir Nabokov. The name originates from Karner, the former name of Guilderland, New York, where it was first discovered. Lupine blooms in late May. There are two generations of Karner Blues per year. The first in late May to mid June. The second from mid-July to mid-August.

Contents

Resources

External Links

Resources

NY DEC article on the Karner Blue
http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10370_12145_12204-33007--,00.html

External Links

★ Rhapsody In Blue The Karner blue butterfly makes a comeback

★ The Return of The Karner Blue in Ohio