The Poweshiek skipperling was once so abundant across the Midwest that scientists didn’t even bother counting them. Then, its population crashed. By 2022, just nine were counted across the United States.

Now, an ambitious conservation effort in Michigan is working to bring the tiny butterfly back from the brink.

Today, we’re taking a closer look at the program behind that comeback, and how researchers hope these butterflies can eventually thrive on their own.

MI health officials say it’s safe to resume eating lettuce (ABC News): Michigan health officials say residents can resume their normal lettuce and salad-eating habits as new cyclosporiasis cases decline following an outbreak linked to contaminated greens. More than 12,400 cases, 279 hospitalizations, and two deaths have been reported in Michigan, though officials say most contaminated produce is likely no longer available.

SE Michigan bat tests positive for rabies (ClickOnDetroit): A bat found in Livingston County has tested positive for rabies, marking the county’s first reported animal case of the year. Health officials are urging residents to avoid contact with bats and to seek medical guidance after potential exposure. Rabies is nearly always fatal once symptoms begin, but death can be prevented if treatment is given before symptoms appear.

Michigan GOP solidifies candidates (WCMU): Michigan Republicans gathered in Mount Pleasant for their annual convention, formally backing candidates including US Senate nominee Mike Rogers and gubernatorial nominee John James ahead of the November election. Party leaders emphasized unity and confidence in the GOP ticket.

The count of the once abundant Poweshiek skipperling butterfly got down to nine butterflies spotted in the United States by 2022 – all at one Oakland County prairie fen. (USA Today Network)

By USA Today Network via Reuters Connect

The Poweshiek skipperling, a small prairie butterfly, was once so abundant across the Midwest and Plains, scientists doing nature inventories didn’t bother to count them, said Tamara Smith, a biologist with US Fish and Wildlife Service.

“It was just like, ‘Oh yeah; it’s here. There are two of them on every flower,’ ” she said.

Then the population began to rapidly crash, spurred by loss of the very particular habitat the butterfly needs and the use of certain agricultural pesticides that also killed butterflies. By 2014, the federal government listed the Poweshiek skipperling as endangered. By 2022, only nine of the butterflies were counted anywhere in the United States, in one prairie fen complex in Oakland County.

David Pavlik, a research assistant with Michigan State University’s Haddad Lab and its endangered butterfly program, said that when he joined the Poweshiek Skipperling International Partnership, a coalition seeking to preserve the species, “it was almost expected that this butterfly was going to be gone soon; I mean, the population trajectories were just so bad.”

Bill Flanagan, conservation manager at the John Ball Zoo in Grand Rapids, said that when he and the zoo were approached about lending a hand to save the Poweshiek skipperling in 2020, he had to do an internet search to learn what it was.

“The more I learned, the more I realized this is probably one of the most critically endangered animals, period,” he said. “When I got that email from Dave [Pavlik], there were something like 10 times as many giant pandas as there were Poweshiek skipperlings.”

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While we technically still have four weeks left of summer, the end of August tends to feel like the end of the season, with students returning to school and the mornings becoming noticeably chillier.

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Thanks for reading. This newsletter was written by Karel Vega with a feature story from USA Today Network via Reuters Connect. It was edited by Crystal Niforos.

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