Saint Francis' Satyr

Found only in North Carolina.

WSU Vancouver

June 10, 2022

Geography

Range Map

St Francis' satyr (Neonympha mitchellii francisci) is a subspecies of Mitchell's Satyr found only in North Carolina.

Study Area

Our study area is near Fayetteville, North Carolina at Fort Bragg , which is home to the only known population.

Natural History

Species interactions

Host Plant

St Francis' satyrs feed on sedges (Carex spp.) and wetlands grasses as caterpillars.

A pale green St. Francis satyr butterfly feeds on a blade of grass.

Nectar Plants

They are nectar generalists, focusing on plants nearby the wetland, though many sites have few flowers.

Closeup of several black eyed susan flowers.

Habitat

These butterflies are found in grassy wet meadows, often areas from drained beaver ponds. They do not survive well when trees encroach on the habitat.

Population Dynamics

This species occupies a few interconnected sites in one metapopulation network.
The species relies on a specific stage of wetland, but the natural disturbance regime of fire and beavers have been lost to the area.
The species are slow weak fliers, but able to colonize across short distances.

Life Cycle

Adult

Adults are flying in May-June and then again in July-August for the second brood.

A St. Francis satyr butterfly perches on a grass stem in a pot.

Eggs

Females lay eggs singly or in small batches on hostplants.

Caterpillars

First brood caterpillars will develop into chrysalises, but the second brood will overwinter as large fourth-instars.

Chrysalis

These are attached up on hostplants or nearby vegetation.

Conservation

Listing Status

St Francis' satyrs were listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act in 1994. The species of Mitchell's satyr is considered to be globally imperiled , and exist in disjunct and isolated populations.

Recovery Efforts

Disturbance by Beavers

Disturbance is an important element of the maintenance of Saint Francis' satyr habitat. Historically, this butterfly has thrived in regions where beaver activity maintained wetland habitat and reduced woody encroachment.

Military training also has positive impacts. At Fort Bragg, training activities cause low-intensity, frequent burns, which result in the control of woody encroachment and the maintenance of early successional habitat. However, subpopulations outside of military impact areas have been reduced from five to one.

Habitat Restoration

Recognizing this, USFWS and partners began restoring additional habitat in 2011. Management activities included removing hardwood trees and the installation of artificial dams, the latter of which mimics beaver activity. Pictured here is a graph from the 5-year review conducted by USFWS in 2020. Population estimates are much higher for the restored habitat, but only two restored areas appear to support a population as of 2020.

Studies are underway in restoration areas to better understand the status of Saint Francis' satyr. Researchers are conducting mark/recapture studies, releasing captive reared larvae to suitable sites, and measuring egg and larval survival. Recent results indicated that larval survivorship was three times greater in restoration areas where hardwood was removed.

Further studies are needed to assess the status of this butterfly and understand more about the conditions of its habitat.

Population Trends

We analyzed sites from 2002-2011, which stops prior to the captive rear and release program began. Many of the sites were declining during this time, but only one had a detected phenological shift.