Lindsey Lebrick
Bio 104
Dr. Stelzer
Endangered Species in Wisconsin In previous years, the environment was looked at as an infinite resource. People did not realize their actions had negative effects on the environment and the species it inhabited. Such negative effects was pollution, which harmed animals and their living areas more than thought possible. It wasn’t until after events started happening, that people realized the harm they were inflicting. There were and still are many endangered species from this, however organizations and laws are now involved in the stabilization of these animals and prevention techniques. There are several endangered species in Wisconsin, however the first I am going to talk about is the Lycaeides Melissa samuelis, otherwise known as the Karner blue butterfly. These butterflies are federally endangered in the USA, at eleven sites at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin (Guiney, Androw and Wilder). The samuelis butterflies, both male and female have a wingspan of about one inch, but vary in appearance. The topside of the male is a silvery dark blue with black marks. The female is a grayish brown, especially on the outer portions of the wings. The females are wings are blue on the top and have irregular bands of orange crescents inside the narrow brown boarder. The underside of both sexes is gray with a continuous band of orange crescents along the edges of both wings and with scattered black spots circled with white. The Karner blue butterfly usually has two generations, and thus two hatches, each year. In April, the first group of caterpillars hatch from eggs that were laid the previous year. The caterpillars feed only on wild lupine plant leaves. By about mid-May, the caterpillars pupate and adult butterflies emerge from their cocoon by the end of May or in early June. These adults mate, laying their eggs in June on or near wild lupine plants. The eggs hatch in about one week and the caterpillars feed for about three weeks. They then pupate and the summer's second generation of adult butterflies appears in July. These adults mate and lay eggs that will not hatch until the following spring. Their feeding habits are that they only feed on the leaves of wild lupine plant. Adults feed on the nectar of flowering plants. This restricts where they survive. The butterfly is most widespread in Wisconsin, and can be found in portions of Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, and Ohio. It may also be present in Illinois. The Karner blue butterfly is endangered due to habitat loss. The range of their habitat has been lost as a result of land development and lack of natural disturbance, such as wildfire and grazing by large mammals. This helps by setting back forests and encouraging lupine and flowering plant growth. The Karner blue butterfly was federally listed as an endangered species since 1992. There is a recovery plan by The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that describes and prioritizes actions need to conserve and restore this species. Researchers studying the butterfly found it is best to manage this, was its habitat. Wisconsin has implemented a statewide Habitat Conservation Plan that permits human activities, such as roadside maintenance and timber harvests, in areas that support Karners but ensures that the activities are conducted in ways that conserve and protect the species and its habitat. The second endangered species in Wisconsin I am going to discuss is the Hendersonia occulta, which is also known as the Cherrystone drop snail. These terrestrial snails have a thick 6-8mm wide shell that is wider than it is high, usually reddish or yellowish in color, and lacks an opening in the center of the base of the shell. Inhabitants of small areas of algific habitat or the similar cool, moist, shaded sites of cliffs. Very little is currently known about the biology and life history of the cherrystone drop. It is usually seen between April and September, and is likely to become inactive in autumn and winter, when it probably hides in small crevices. The cherrystone drop feeds on vegetable matter, which it scrapes using a rasping ‘tongue’, or radula, that is covered in rows of hard teeth. Although many snails are hermaphroditic and are capable of self-fertilization, in the cherrystone drop individuals are either male or female. This species lays its eggs in moist locations, such as beneath leaf litter or logs. The location of the snails in soil and leaf litter at the base of the cliffs makes them vulnerable to trampling. Preservation of habitat along the Lake Michigan shoreline will be a decisive factor in the long-term status of the snails in Wisconsin. (Lynum, Amundson and Little). The third endangered species from Wisconsin is Grus Americana, also known as the whooping crane. This species is one of two crane species native to North America. An adult Whooping Crane is white with a red crown and a long, dark, pointed bill. Young Whooping Cranes are cinnamon brown. While in flight, their long necks are kept straight and their long dark legs trail behind. Adult Whooping Cranes' black wing tips are visible during flight.
They depend on large, open wetland ecosystems to eat, roost, and make their Whooping cranes were extirpated from the Midwest and are listed as federally endangered due to decrease in habitat and from being previous hunting targets. The Wisconsin DNR, along with other members of the Whooping Crane Eastern Partnership (WCEP), are working to restore an eastern migratory population of whooping cranes that migrates annually between its Wisconsin breeding grounds and its wintering habitat in the United States. This species is not actively tracked in the Natural Heritage Inventory Database, but it could be tracked in the future if there is further evidence of its decline (King, Espenshade and Kirkpatrick-Wahl).
The fourth endangered species is the Iris lacutris, also known as the Dwarf Lake Iris. The Dward lake iris is a miniature iris with deep blue flowers. However, lilac or white flowers can be found. Their leaves are flattened, sword-like, and arranged in fan-shape clusters. The Dward lake iris only grows around the Great Lakes and occurs near the northern showers of lakes in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ontario, Canada. Their habitat is cool, moist lakeshore air. Dwarf lake iris is found on sand or in thin soil over limestone-rich gravel or bedrock. Habitat is along old beach ridges or behind open dunes. Changing water levels can open new habitat for the plants.
The Dwarf lake iris is endangered because of habitat loss and degradation. Their habitat has been greatly reduced due to shoreline development. Residential and vacation homes, road-widening, chemical spraying and salting, and off-road vehicle use are all causes of disturbance and destruction of their habitat. Collection is also a problem. The Dwarf lake iris has been offered for sale commercially. Collection from wild populations affects the species and is now a violation of State and Federal laws. Picking the flowers often uproots the plants and prevents seed from forming. Dwarf lake iris was added to the U.S. List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants in 1988. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is in the process of developing a recovery plan that describes actions needed to help this plant survive. Dwarf lake iris populations have been monitored to determine long-term population trends and to better understand habitat and reproductive requirements. Genetic studies have been conducted to better explain population structure and differences between populations. A variety of government and private conservation agencies are working to preserve the dwarf lake iris and its habitat. Voluntary protection agreements have also been made with some private landowners (Mitchell).
The last Wisconsin endanger species I am going to talk about is the gray wolf. The gray wolf’s head is relatively large, with broad cheeks below the eyes. Face markings are well blended, lacking distinguishable borders. Well furred erect ears rounded. Light colored slanted eyes, ranging from amber to yellow. They are normally rusty brown with black tipped hair. Wolves were once common throughout all of North America but were killed in most areas of the United States by the mid 1930s. Today their range has been reduced to Canada and the following portions of the United States: Alaska, Idaho, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
The most common cause of death for wolves is conflict with people over livestock losses. Wolves that do prey on them are often killed to protect the livestock. Environmental organizations are working to develop non-lethal methods to reduce the chances of a wolf attacking livestock. These methods include fencing livestock, lighting, alarm systems and removing dead or dying livestock that may attract carnivores like wolves. Another serious threat is human development into wolf territory, which leads to habitat loss for wolves and their prey species. Overall, the greatest threat to wolves is people's fear and misunderstanding about the species.

Works Cited
Dollar, Tom. "Wisconsin's Timber Wolves." Wildlife Conservation 109.1 (2006): 16.
Guiney, Margaret S., David A. Androw and Timothy T. Wilder. "Metapopulation structure and dynamics of an endangered butterfly." Basic & Applied Ecology 11.4 (2010): 354-362. May 2012.
King, Richard S., et al. "Whooping Crane Grus americana chick mortality and management intervention." Wildlife Biology 19.4 (2010): 420-428. May 2014.
Lynum, Christopher A., et al. "Hendersonia occulta, the Cherrystone drop snail." Ebsco Host 9.2 (2013): 472-74. May 2014.
Mitchell, Kim. "Endangered Species ." 1 April 2014. United States Fish & Wildlife Services. 2 May 2014.