Native Butterfly Project

The Sequoia Park Zoo (SPZ) & the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) are working to support the recovery of these rare coastal butterflies. The program includes habitat restoration work, and in 2016 SPZ became permitted to start captive-rearing butterflies. Biologists collect eggs from adult butterflies, they hatch inside the lab, caterpillars are reared to pupae, and then released back into the wild. This work is crucial to support the declining population. The Butterfly Conservation Program is funded entirely through donations and grants. 

Starting in 2023, B Bryan Preserve started hosting the annual training, where program leaders review butterfly handling and data collection with the release team. Many of the staff at BBP are all trained members of the release team. They participate in data collection and releasing butterflies for several months every summer in addition to their regular jobs at B Bryan Preserve.