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Miami Blue Butterfly
Hemiargus thomasi bethunedaberi
Photo credit: NPS
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The Endangered Butterflies of Florida
The Miami Blue Butterfly
Hemiargus thomasi bethunedaberi
This tiny Butterfly, which once ranged all
along Coastal Florida, is now relegated
to just a narrow Habitat in the Keys.
Unlike the Schaus, which had a few survivors,
the Miami Blue appeared to have been completely
eliminated by Hurricane Andrew in 1992.
In 1999 just a few of them were found in the
Bahia Honda State Park in the Florida Keys.
In 2002, after a great deal of petitioning, an Emergency
Action was finally put into place by Florida Fish and
Wildlife,
thus securing them a spot on the Endangered Species List.
In 2003, help finally came in the form of the
University of Florida's Captive Breeding program.
If you love Butterflies, please take your children
and yourself to the UF Natural History Museum.
This world class Museum is all free except for the
Butterfly Rainforest, a wonderland filled
with living Butterflies of every description.
The walls in the free section are covered with so many,
that it could take you hours to see all of them.
Hopefully, the Miami Blue will find the same successful
ending to their story as did the Schaus Swallowtail.
Places to learn more:
Biological Diversity
Miami Blue Butterfly
FNAI
Butterfly
Gallery
Miami Blue Chapter
Upper Florida
Keys
Miami Herald
Miami Blue Disappearing Fast
NABA
Miami Blue Fund
NPS
Miami Blue Reintroduced
UF News
Miami Blue Meets the UF Breeding Program
Walking with the Alligators
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Last edited
January 23, 2010
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