Assessing pollinator and vegetation response to the USDA State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) program for the Karner blue butterfly

In Eau Claire County, Wisconsin, the USDA Farm Service Agency and Natural Resource Conservation Service State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE) program was created to provide suitable habitat for the federally endangered Karner Blue butterfly (Lycaeides melissa samuelis) on Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) lands. In 2009, we began a 10-year study of the effectiveness of the program for establishing native vegetation and attracting pollinators, specifically butterflies and bumblebees. During June-August, 2009-2011 we conducted surveys of butterflies and vegetation along 200-m transects on each of 8 CRP sites and two native prairie sites. Bees were additionally collected in 2010 and 2011. We observed a total of 502 butterflies belonging to 27 species in 2009 and 2010. The majority were cabbage whites (Pieris rapae) and monarchs (Danaus plexxipus) in 2009 and clouded sulfers (Colias philodice) and red admirals (Vanessa atalanta) in 2010. Gorgone Checkerspots (Chlosyne gorgone) and Karner Blues were unique to native sites. We collected 9 species of Bombus spp. in 2010 with mean abundance/transect greatest on native sites. We counted a total 78 species of forbs, 20 of which were restricted to native sites. On CRP sites we observed 9 of 11 species planted as part of the CRP program, e.g.,(Lupinus perennis). NMDS ordination of forb species community composition separated CRP from native sites with CRP sites dominated by "weedy" species and influenced by pre-cropping history.