Uncompahgre Fritillary
Encyclopedia
The Uncompahgre Fritillary (Boloria acrocnema) is a species of butterfly
in the Nymphalidae
family. It is endemic to the United States
. It is the last butterfly to be discovered in North America and was found by one Stanford University
student and one University of Alberta student (Felix Sperling, the initiator) working out of the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory
. It was thought to be on the edge of extinction, but a number of additional populations have been found and the early monitoring programs that detected small numbers were found to be inadequate. The population is still considered to be endangered.
Butterfly
A butterfly is a mainly day-flying insect of the order Lepidoptera, which includes the butterflies and moths. Like other holometabolous insects, the butterfly's life cycle consists of four parts: egg, larva, pupa and adult. Most species are diurnal. Butterflies have large, often brightly coloured...
in the Nymphalidae
Nymphalidae
The Nymphalidae is a family of about 5,000 species of butterflies which are distributed throughout most of the world. These are usually medium sized to large butterflies. Most species have a reduced pair of forelegs and many hold their colourful wings flat when resting. They are also called...
family. It is endemic to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is the last butterfly to be discovered in North America and was found by one Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
student and one University of Alberta student (Felix Sperling, the initiator) working out of the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory
Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory
The Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory is a Colorado high-altitude biological field station located near Crested Butte, in the West Elk mountains) It offers courses for undergraduate students - including National Science Foundation funded REU students and provides support for researchers...
. It was thought to be on the edge of extinction, but a number of additional populations have been found and the early monitoring programs that detected small numbers were found to be inadequate. The population is still considered to be endangered.
Source
- World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1996. Boloria acrocnema 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Downloaded on 31 July 2007.
- Uncompahgre Fritillary, Butterfly Conservation Initiative