The rare purple copper butterfly (Paralucia spinifera), previously only known to occur in the Central Tablelands of NSW, has been found in two areas of Namadgi National Park again this year, following its discovery in the ACT in 2021.
Collaboration between ACT Government ecologists, community butterfly experts, and volunteers enabled a successful survey of the butterflies despite wet conditions, Rebecca Vassarotti, Minister for the Environment, and Mick Gentleman, Minister for Planning and Land Management, said.
The small iridescent butterflies measure only 20 to 30mm, Mr Gentleman said.
“The butterflies are very particular about elevation, being found only in areas between 850 and 1150 meters above sea level,” Ms Vassarotti said. “They seem to favour post-fire habitats dominated by their primary food, blackthorn plants. The butterflies then play an important role in fire recovery as a source of food themselves.”
The surveys suggest that the species may also live in areas of the ACT unaffected by fire.
“These monitoring efforts, in conjunction with citizen science, are crucial to improving our understanding of the endangered species, including how it interacts with the other plants and animals in the ACT,” Ms Vassarotti said.
Mr Gentleman said the Namadgi National Park sightings are very special, as the butterfly populations are protected from many of the threats in other areas: habitat loss or modification that results from land clearing, spraying, grazing, and weed invasion.
“Unfortunately, the recent wet weather limited access to many areas of the park, so we were really encouraged to find populations of the butterflies despite that challenge.
“We will survey additional areas of Namadgi National Park next year as part of our continued effort to map ACT populations and inform management practices. I’m hopeful that we will see more of these rare butterflies in the future.”
To help conservation efforts, the community is encouraged to upload possible sightings of the Purple Copper Butterfly to Canberra Nature Map.
