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Mission blue butterflies lay their eggs on 3 species of lupine which need fire or another disturbace process to regenerate - NPS photo by Jessica Weinberg
Fire, Lupine, and Butterflies at Milagra Ridge
experimental treatments to enhance Mission blue butterfly habitat
The Mission blue butterfly (Icaricia icarioides) is a federally endangered species found in the San Francisco Bay Area from San Mateo north to the Marin Headlands. This butterfly depends on three species of lupine as larval host plants: silver leaf lupine (Lupinus albifrons), varied lupine (L. variicolor), and summer lupine (L. formosus). In the absence of fire and large native herbivores, these plants regenerate poorly or not at all and much of their habitat, which is predominantly coastal grasslands, changes over time into coastal scrub.
In 2010, Golden Gate National Recreation Area initiated a project to compare the effects of different types of disturbance on lupine regeneration. Experimental plots were established at the Marin Headlands in southern Marin County and Milagra Ridge in San Mateo County. The plots were either treated with fire, treated with mechanical scraping or left untreated as controls. The first year of monitoring showed that both fire and mechanical disturbance were effective in stimulating lupine germination, but that mechanical disturbance was more effective. Both types of treatment also lead to increased cover of invasive non-native species, again with more of impact from the mechanical treatment. Preliminary results from continued monitoring suggest the butterflies have begun using some of the disturbance plots with an apparent preference for the burn plots.These treatments may be a valuable tool for protecting lupine host plant populations into the future which is critical to the survival of Mission blue butterflies.
See also presentation from the 2012 Natural Resources Symposium.
Burn boxes were part of an experiment on Milagra Ridge to learn about lupine regeneration techniques |
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Upcoming Events
JUNE 12 - FIRE SAFE SAN MATEO MEETING / GGNRA FIRE PRESENTATION - Staff from Golden Gate National Recreation Area will provide an overview of wildland fire management at GGNRA and discuss an amendment to the park's fire management plan to include new park lands at Rancho Coral de Tierra. The presentation will be at 10:00 am, during the regular Fire Safe San Mateo Meeting at Woodside Town Hall. The meeting begins at 9:30 am and is open to the public.
JUNE 17 - DEADLINE TO COMMENT - EAST BAY HILLS HAZARDOUS FIRE RISK REDUCTION PROJECT - The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is preparing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on proposed hazardous fire risk reduction activities in Alameda and Contra Costa counties and in the Miller Knox/Shoreline More...
JUNE 25 - GGNRA FIRE PRESENTATION / MONTARA PUBLIC MEETING - Staff from Golden Gate National Recreation Area will provide an overview of wildland fire management at GGNRA and discuss an amendment to the park's fire management plan to include new park lands at Rancho Coral de Tierra. Farallone View School, Montara, CA, 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM.
MID-JULY 2012 - CALIFORNIA FIRE SAFE COUNCIL GRANTS CLEARINGHOUSE 2014 FUNDING CYCLE OPENS - Applications for 2014 grant funds will be accepted through mid-September. Grant writing workshops and webinars will be announced soon. More...
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