Table Of Content52 General Notes
JournaloftheLepidopterists’Society
62(1),2008,52-53
SUMMERAZURE CELASTRINA NEGLECTAW. H. EDWARDS, LYCAENIDAE) NECTARING ON
(
POISON IVY TOXICODENDRONRAD1CANS ANACARDIACEAE)
( ,
The purpose of this communication is to report on butterflythat repeatedlyvisitedthe same site.
the ecological relationship between poison ivy Total length of time spent per visit on a single
(Toxicodendron radicans [L.] Kuntze) and Summer inflorescencewas recorded on both June 9 andJune 10
Azure (Celastrina neglecta, W. H. Edwards; (n = 12). Mean time per visit was 39.3 s (standard
Papilionoidea: Lycaenidae) as discovered during a deviation = 38 s; median = 37.6 s). During this
systematic survey of poison ivy pollination during the observation period, Celastrina neglecta would only
summerof2005. nectaratan inflorescence ifitwas the solevisitor; when
Dailyobservations ofat least one hourinlengthwere acompetingvisitor (such as abee) alightedon the same
conducted at a central Iowa site (East River Valley inflorescence, the butterfly would immediately leave.
Park/CarrWoods, Ames, Iowa; StoiyCounty) fromJune Celastrina neglectawaspersistentinitsvisits evenwhen
6-June 20, 2005. June 6 was the day of the first strongwindwas present.
recorded open inflorescence and pollination event and Previously, the only known relationships between
June 20 the last recorded pollination event. This site Lepidoptera and poison ivy and its relatives
harbors both climbing and nonclimbing individuals of Toxicodendron section Toxicodendron, Anacardiaceae)
(
eastern poison ivy Toxicodendron radicans subsp. were for larval feeding and shelter (Criddle 1927; Dyar
(
negundo, Anacardiaceae; Gillis 1971). Eachpollination 1904; Eastman and Hansen 1991; Gillis 1971; Richers
event was photographed using an Olympus D-540 2007; Robinsonetal. 2007; Tietz 1972). Nectar-seeking
(eitherstill shots orvideo) andwasaccompaniedbyfield at poison ivy (T. radicans) by Celastrina neglecta
notes indicatinglength ofvisit andtime ofday. represents a novel relationship between adult
Celastrina neglecta visited inflorescences on three of Lepidoptera and poison ivy previously unrecognized,
the fifteen days thatviableinflorescenceswere available and enhances our understanding of Lepidoptera-
(Fig. I). Five distinct nectaring observations were Toxicoclendron interactions. This observation also adds
recorded on June 8, eleven on June 9, and one on June to our understanding ofthe diversity ofplant lineages
10. All events occurredbetween 13:00and 18:00hours, forwhich Lepidoptera mayprovide pollination service.
and the observation period on each of the three days Insects from two other orders are also known to
was approximately the same (~2 h). These days were pollinate poison ivy, including multiple coleopteran
towards the beginning of the flowering period when families (e.g., Cantharidae, Cerambycidae, and
inflorescences were most abundant throughout the Cleridae; Senchina 2005) and the ubiquitous honeybee
population (pers. obs.). Multiple individuals were (Apis mellifera I4ymenoptera:Apidae; Gillis 1971; Lieux
,
observed visiting the same plants simultaneously on 1981). The identification of Celastrina neglecta as a
both |une 8 and 9, indicatingvisits were not bya single poison ivy floral associate suggests that adults from
multiple insect orders may be important in poison ivy
pollination ecology.
Literature Cited
Criddle, N. 1927. Lepidopterarearedin Manitobafrompoisonivy.
Can. Entomol.59:99-101.
Dyar, H.G. 1904. Poisonivycaterpillars. NewYorkEntomol. Soc.
J.
12:249-250.
Eastman, and A. Hansen. 1991. The book offorest andthicket:
J.
trees, shrubs, andwildflowersofeastern NorthAmerica. Stack-
pole.Mechanicsburg.xi +212pp.
Gillis,W.T. 1971.Thesystematicsandecologyofpoison-ivyandthe
poison-oaks (Toxicodendron, Anacardiaceae). Rhodora 73:
72-159, 161-237,370-443,465-540.
Lieux, M.H. 1981. An analysis of Mississippi USA honey: pollen,
color,andmoisture.Apidologie 12: 137-158.
Richers, K. 2007. California Moth Specimen Database.
Fig. 1. Celastrina neglectanectaringataninflorescenceofpoison Accessed on July 11, 2007. http://bscit.berkeley.edu/eme/cal-
ivy(Toxicodendron radicans)onJune8,2005. moth_species_list.html.
Volume 62, Number 1 53
Robinson, G.S., P.R. Ackery, I.]. Pitching, G.W. Baccaloni, and David S. Senchina, 2507 University Ave., Biology
L.M. Hernandez. HOSTS - A Database ofthe World’s Lepi- Department, Drake University, Des Moines, IA 50311-
dopteran Hostplants. Accessed on |uly 11, 2007.
http://www.nlim.ac.uk/researcli-curation/projects/liostplants. 4516, email: [email protected].
Senchina, D.S. 2005. Beetleinteractionswithpoisonivyandpoison
oak(ToxicodendronP. Mill.sect.Toxicodendron,Anacardiaceae).
Coleopt. Bull.59:328-334. Receivedforpublication 26June 2006, revisedand accepted 6
Tietz,H.M. 1972.Anindextothedescribedlifehistories,earlystages December2007.
and hosts of the Macrolepidoptera of the continental United
StatesandCanada,vol. II.A.C.Allyn;Sarasota. 1041pp.
JournaloftheLepidopterists’Society
62(1),2008,53-56
ROAD CROSSING BEHAVIOR OF AN ENDANGERED GRASSLAND BUTTERFLY, ICAR1CIA
ICARIOIDES FENDERI MACY (LYCAENIDAE), BETWEEN A SUBDIVIDED POPULATION
Additional keywords:conservation,Lupinus, Oregon.
As high qualitygrasslands dwindle fromdegradation, areas for butterflies with specialized habitat
habitat fragmentation increases, and urbanization requirements, then understanding how these species
expands butterflies must cope with the encroachment respond to human modified habitats is important for
of human modified landscapes if they are to survive. conservationplanning.
Some butterflies have incorporated exotic larval host Icaricia icarioides fenderi Macy (Lycaenidae),
plants and non-native nectar resources to survive in hereafter Fender’s blue, is an endangered, endemic-
urbanized habitats (Shapiro 2002, Graves & Shapiro species to remnantWillametteValleyuplandprairies of
2003) while others occupy the isolated vestiges of western Oregon, U.S.A. Fender’s blue is presently
historically dominant habitats (Severns el al. 2006). known from about 15 remnant upland prairie sites
For butterflies to survive in human modified habitats (Wilson et al. 2003) and most ofthese are fragmented
they must successfully navigate amongst an array ol andisolated. About halfof the remainingFender's blue
unnatural physical structures like residential areas, butterflies are located within the city limits and just
roads, vacant lots, agricultural fields, orchards, to find west of Eugene, Oregon (Schultz et al. 2003),
adult resources, mates, and larval host plants. While suggesting that conservation of this species will likely
some vagile, polyphagous butterflies appear to be involve butterfly movement through human modified
successful in urban situations (Blair & Launer 1997) habitats (McEntireetal. 2007). Furthermore, Fender’s
others with narrow host plant breadth and specific- blue appears to Ire limited to primarily local
habitat requirements suffer as habitat modification movements (Schultz 1998) and its primary larval host,
increases. Ifwe are to conserve, create, and maintain Lupinus sulphureus Dough ex Hook. ssp. kincaidii
[C.R Smith] Phillips (Fabaceae), Kincaid’s lupine, is
also a locally restricted, threatened species that can be
difficult to establish (Schultz 2001, Severns 2003). In
thenearfuture, Fender’sbluewill face thepressures of
navigatingthrough amatrixhuman modifiedhabitats as
open areas surrounding remnant native prairies are
becomingincreasinglyurbanized. An understandingof
how Fender’s blue responds to roads and physical
barriers that isolate butterfly populations and suitable
grasslandhabitatwill contributeimportant information
to aidlandscape level butterflyconservation planning.
I selectedapopulationof Fender’s bluebutterflythat
occupies remnant upland prairie in western Oregon,
USA to study ifa road and hedgerowwere barriers to
butterfly movement. This study site, -10km west of
Fig. 1. Photographofnarrow,two-lanepavedroad,andhedgerow Eugene, contains one of the larger remnant butterfly
(3m - 5m tall x 100m long) separating the southern subpopulation populations that is bisected by a paved, narrow two-
habitat(left)andthenorthernsubpopulation(behindthehedgerow). lane road, bordered on the east side by a 3-5m tall
