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Galef Announces School Contest to Vote For State Butterfly
Assemblywoman Galef announces a butterfly contest to involve 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders in a statewide vote to determine the New York State Butterfly. Galef has invited school principals to have their schools participate in this unique opportunity.
Galef received a letter from an eager 3rd grader in her district, promoting the adoption of a statewide butterfly. At least twenty-five Assembly members are joining her in this initiative, inviting students to vote on several butterflies, on or before Election Day. After a final tally, legislation will be drafted to have the winning butterfly be voted on by the Senate and Assembly to become the New York State Butterfly.
The five butterflies in the contest include the Black Swallowtail, the Karner Blue Butterfly, the Milbert's Tortoiseshell, the Mourning Cloak, and the Red Spotted Purple or White Admiral. The butterflies that will be voted on by students are displayed on Galef's Assembly website, http:// assembly.state.ny.us/mem/ ?ad=090, with a picture and small paragraph about each one. Galef encourages schools in New York to take part in this program, giving the students hands on experience about the electoral and legislative process, while having fun.
"This contest is a wonderful experience to get our young people involved and a good way for them to learn about the election process. They are being given the chance to get involved in the legislative process and have practical experience through this initiative," stated Galef.
Nominees and information gathered from http:// www.butterfliesandmoths.org/ and research from Tim McCabe, Ph.D., State Entomologist and John Fortino, Butterfly House Coordinator Hershey Gardens.
Butterfly Nominees for New York State Butterfly: Black Swallowtail- This butterfly is part of the Parnassians and Swallowtail families. The males perch and patrol for receptive females. The coloring of both the butterfly and its caterpillar are very showy, and they have two broods, adult flight periods, per year, in New York State. As a caterpillar it feeds on carrots, parsley, and dill, making them easily attracted to gardens. Its habitat tends to be suburbs, fields, marshes, and roadsides.
Karner Blue Butterfly- The Karner Blue butterfly has become an emblem of an endangered species since 1992, because of its restrictive habitat that has been dwindling, due to things such as land development. Michigan and Ohio have plans to re-establish the Blue Karner in different parts of their state. It is roughly the size of a postage stamp, the male being blue with black and white and the female having more brown and grayish colorings. The butterflies host plant is the wild lupine in open savannas and cleared areas.
Milbert's Tortoiseshell- Milbert's Tortoiseshell is found in the northern part of New York State, it is very adaptable with the ability to live in urban or rural areas. It is viewable for much, if not most, of the nonwinter seasons, May-October, because it lives through the winter as an adult. This butterfly is part of the Brush footed butterfly family and like the Black Swallowtail it has two broods per year. They can be seen perching on hillsides, logs, or behind bushes, and tend to be very colorful.
Mourning Cloak- The Mourning Cloak is a medium to large size distinctive butterfly, showing off brown and black wings with a yellow boarder and blue spots. It is the first butterfly one sees in the spring and the last one to disappear in the fall. It tends to perch on high objects and is seen in cities and villages throughout New York State. In England, its common name is the "Camberwell Beauty." The common name of this butterfly has been spelled in a vari- ety of ways "Morning Cloak", "Mourning Cloak" and "Morningcloak." The approved standardized common name (established by the Entomological Society of America) is none of these, but rather "Mourningcloak".
Red Spotted Purple or White Admiral - This butterfly can be seen statewide, the red-spotted form in the southern areas of the state, having adapted to a different coloring in order to survive in this area, and the white form in the northern areas, which is the older of the two form. They are two forms, but essentially one species. It is a "mud-puddling" butterfly, lapping up sodium ions at mud puddles. It is in the family of brush-footed butterflies, Latin name is nymphalidae. New York has a acceptable habitat to both forms allowing for a significant population of each, which is unique.
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