Nearly 1,500 endangered butterflies set to be released in effort to save species, Minnesota Zoo says

Conservationists at the Minnesota Zoo say recovery efforts for one of North America's most endangered butterfly species are giving them renewed optimism about the species' future. 

The Poweshiek skipperling, a small prairie butterfly once common throughout Minnesota's tall grass, nearly disappeared over the past few decades. The species is now only found in a few isolated areas of Michigan and Manitoba, Canada. The decline is attributed to habitat loss and degradation.

"Considered probably the most Minnesotan butterfly," Erik Runquist, conservation scientist at the Minnesota Zoo, said. "Used to be one of the most abundant butterflies in Minnesota's prairies until it remarkably disappeared."  

Last year, The Minnesota Zoo, the John Ball Zoo in Michigan and Assiniboine Park Conservancy in Canada received the Association of Zoos and Aquariums' 2025 North American Conservation Award for their collaborative work to save the critically endangered species.

"With every little step we are bringing this butterfly back closer to recovery," Runquist said.

In 2012, an initiative was launched by the three institutions to refine captive breeding techniques to stabilize the species. 

Thousands of zoo-reared butterflies have been released into the wild, and now the entire U.S. population may trace back to just 18 females held at the Minnesota Zoo at the start of the program. 

Nearly 1,500 butterflies will be released back into prairies in Michigan and Manitoba in July.

"Indications are seeming to go very well. We could be bringing this butterfly back to Minnesota," Runquist said.

While conservation efforts remain, alongside a new project in a critical habitat, the ongoing initiatives could eventually open the doors to reintroduction in Minnesota in the next few years. 

"It's taken a lot of work and a lot of blood, sweat and tears," Runquist said.

According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the species was listed as endangered in 2014.

The butterflies can be found with dots on the wings, indicating how the species is being tracked by different conservation groups.

"The world would be a lonelier place and smaller place without this butterfly," Runquist said.

The Minnesota Zoo says the Poweshiek skipperling typically has a life span of one year and only lives for two weeks as an adult. The season for the butterflies is mid-to-late June.