Palos Verdes Blue Butterfly

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The federally endangered Palos Verdes blue butterfly (Glaucopsyche lygdamus paloverdesensis) was rediscovered on Defense Fuel Support Point, San Pedro in 1994 after 10 years of presumed extinction. This butterfly was historically only known from the Palos Verdes Peninsula, and its rediscovery on Defense Fuel Support Point, San Pedro prompted immediate action by the Department of Defense (Defense Logistics Agency and Department of the Navy), which instituted a conservation program to bring this butterfly back from the brink of extinction and thereby fulfill its obligations under the Endangered Species Act. The success of this conservation program has been one of the Department of Defense’s most noteworthy, and has generated considerable press and recognition by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Current conservation efforts are guided by the Biological Opinion on the Formal Section 7 Consultation for Routine Maintenance Operations, Defense Fuel Support Point, San Pedro, Los Angeles County, California (United States Fish and Wildlife Service, 2010). This proposed cooperative agreement continues the captive rearing and population surveys which are integral for ensuring the continued survivorship of this species. The efforts include continued rearing and breeding of captive stock at both primary (Defense Fuel Support Point) and secondary (Moorpark College, Moorpark, California) sites identified by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.

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