NABA Butterfly Counts

The NABA Butterfly Counts, a program for the North American Butterfly Association, is a compilation of all butterflies observed at sites within a 15-mile diameter count circle in a one-day period. The annually published reports provide a tremendous amount of information about the geographical distribution and relative population sizes of the species counted. Comparisons of the results across years can be used to monitor changes in butterfly populations and study the effects of weather and habitat change on North American butterflies.

For 2008, 474 butterfly counts were held (34 Spring Seasonal counts, 400 4th/1st of July & 16th of September counts, and 40 Fall Seasonal counts), in addition to three counts from previous years. The 442 counts in the U.S. were held in 50 states (counting DC as a state), with no counts reported from Hawaii (last count in 1989). Florida led in number of counts (57, the same as last year), followed by Texas (34, down 3), and California (26, down a whopping 11). Twelve other states submitted 12-24 counts, while nine states reported only one.

The 28 Canadian counts in 2008 occurred in 4 provinces. Ontario reported the most counts, 19 (two less than last year). Mexico submitted 4 counts from 2 states.

We welcome 20 new counts this year, all in the U.S.

The 2009 NABA Butterfly Count Report (to be published in spring 2010) may be ordered from the address below. The cost is $11 for NABA members and for $16 for non-NABA members.

NABA Butterfly Count
4 Delaware Rd.
Morristown, NJ 07960

Copies of the previous NABA Butterfly Count Reports (years 1982-1987, 1989-2007 are also available). Each report is $11 for NABA members and $16 for non-members. Shipping and handling is $2 for the first item and $1 for each additional item. Please make check payable to NABA and order from the address above).

The count forms and instructions for the 2010 NABA Butterfly Counts are available for downloading (U.S., Canada, and Mexico). All documents are Portable Document Format (PDF) files which may be viewed and printed by any program that can open and print PDF files. Adobe's Acrobat Reader is recommended and is available free from the Free Adobe Acrobat Reader Software page. You will need to download and install the Acrobat Reader software on your computer.

2008 NABA Butterfly Count Report

Editor

Sharon Wander

Administration

Jeffrey Glassberg, Jane Hurwitz, LIsa Lewis and Jane V. Scott

Regional Editors

Southern California (CA) - Marilyn Lutz
Northern California (CA) - Paul G. Johnson
Northwest (AK, OR, WA) - Sharon Wander
Southwest (AZ, NM) - David B. Richman
Southern Rocky Mountains (CO, NV, UT) - Lynn Monroe
Northern Rocky Mountains (ID, MT, WY) - Christine D. Tonkinson & Jeremy R. Roberts
Texas (TX) - Wallace Ward & Ednelza Henderson
Plains (KS, ND, NE, OK, SD) - Babs Padelford
Western Canada (AB, BC, MB, NT, SK, YT) - Jane Hurwitz
Southeast (AL, AR, LA, MS) - Marty Floyd
Central Midwest (IL, IA, MO) - Mary-Eileen Rufkahr
Upper Midwest (MN, WI) - Michael Reese
Appalachians (KY, TN, WV) - Rita Venable and William Haley
Great Lakes (IN, MI, OH) - Greg Oskay (IN), Timothy Nowicki (MI), Jerome L Wiedmann (OH)
Florida (FL) - Elane Nuehring and Don Stillwaugh
South Atlantic (GA, NC, SC) - Harry E. LeGrand, Jr. (NC, SC) and Mike Chapman (GA)
Mid-Atlantic (DC, DE, MD, VA) - Carolyn Henley (VA) and Rick Cheicante (DC, DE, MD)
New Jersey-Pennsylvanvia (NJ, PA) - Chris Williams (NJ) and Jason & Annie Brueck (PA)
New York (NY) - Charles R. Smith & Colleen Wolpert
Southern New England (CT, MA, RI) - Mark Fairbrother
Northern New England (ME, NH, VT) - Annie & Jason Brueck
Eastern Canada (NB, NF, NS, ON, PQ) - Sharon Wander and Bob Bowles
Mexico - Fred Heath