John Ball Zoo Fights for Great Lakes’ Rarest Butterflies

['Donte Smith', 'Great Lakes Echo', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow', 'Class', 'Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus', 'Display Inline', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar', 'Where Img', 'Height Auto Max-Width', 'Vertical-Align Bottom .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar'] Great Lakes Echo 2025-08-23 00:00:00

Rare Butterfly Program staff cover the pupae with panty hose and use color coordinated clips to keep track of them. To help combat that trend, the John Ball Zoo in Grand Rapids, Michigan, launched its Great Lakes Rare Butterfly Program in 2021 to protect the region’s most threatened species. The program is focused on three endangered species: the Poweshiek skipperling, Mitchell’s satyr and, starting in 2025, the Karner blue butterfly. Flanagan says that 22 different classrooms around the Grand Rapids area are getting lessons on butterflies, and some lessons are tied to the rare butterfly program. The Great Lakes Rare Butterfly Program aims to actively restore a vital part of the Great Lakes’ natural biodiversity.