A 2021 survey of Grand Cayman’s extremely rare pygmy blue butterfly shows that less than 7% of this insect’s mapped habitat falls under protected areas.
The findings of the Department of Environment survey, which were published in its Feb-May edition of Flicker magazine, revealed that only 44 acres on Grand Cayman are able to host the butterflies, “all of which are severely fragmented and most of which do not support Pygmy Blue Butterfly populations to [the DoE’s] knowledge”.
“In January of 2021, local butterfly expert Ann Stafford, entomologist Lonny Coote and National Trust staff member Cathy Childs, found Pygmy Blues in a patch of known remaining habitat” according to the article in Flicker magazine. “Aware of the rarity of this species they reported it to the DoE. (Terrestrial Resources Unit) staff followed up on the report, and took the opportunity to investigate, re-confirm and map remaining populations island-wide.”
At a size of about a quarter-inch, the pygmy blue (whose scientific name is Brephidium exilis) is the smallest butterfly to have ever been documented. These insects are scattered throughout the Western Hemisphere and are predominantly found in North and South American.
In the Caribbean, two subspecies have been documented. The first can be found in the Bahamas, Cuba, Jamaica and Hispaniola.
The second, Berphidium exilis thompsoni, can only be found on Grand Cayman, which makes it an endemic subspecies similar to the Cayman Parrot. These butterflies were first recorded 84 years ago.
The DoE says the survey found pygmy blue butterfly populations in low-lying, salt-tolerant vegetation in Barkers, Meagre Bay Pound and Rum Point. However, the majority of the butterflies were living outside of protected areas.
“The percentage of the mapped Pygmy Blue Butterfly habitat inside Protected Areas is only 6.58%, which renders the populations extremely vulnerable to habitat loss,” states the DoE.
The department said there was one documented incident of encroachment, which has been resolved with the landowner, and now a species Conservation Plan for the pygmy blue is being drafted for public consultation later this year.
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