SEAFWA 2018

AUTHORS: Allison Fowler, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission; Dr. James Bess, Northland Environmental Services, LLC

ABSTRACT: The rattlesnake master borer-moth (Papaipema eryngii) is a critically imperiled species known from Arkansas, Missouri, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Illinois. This species is a candidate for federal listing. The species is an obligate of rattlesnake master (Yuccifolium eryngium). While the host plant is abundant across the Southeast region, only a few populations of the borer-moth are known to occur. Primary habitats are prairies and savanna woodlands. Recent surveys from Missouri yielded several new occurrences. It has been noted that the primary survey technique of attracting adults to light at night is not the best method for this species. Searches involving looking for larvae within the host plant have resulted in more success of detecting the species. Larvae sign on host plants is most noticeable in June and July. The results of Missouri surveys prompted other Southeastern states to take interest and in 2017, region-wide surveys were initiated using pooled funding from the Southeast At-Risk Species (SEARS) program. Surveys were conducted during summer 2017 in Arkansas and Tennessee. No new detections were made in Tennessee. In Arkansas, this project and a parallel project yielded new occurrences in 10 additional counties, greatly expanding the known distribution of this species in the state. Additional surveys are planned in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Florida in summer of 2018. The information gathered here will be an important component of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s species status assessment and will greatly contribute to our knowledge of the distribution and status of the species.