By Justin Goulet

Butterfly Count

UPDATE: Waterton Lakes’ butterfly count rescheduled to July 25

Jul 13, 2019 | 8:10 AM

WATERTON LAKES NATIONAL PARK, AB – UPDATE: Waterton Lakes has announced that the annual butterfly count has been rescheduled to Thursday, July 25. The National Park said this is due to forecasted wind and cooler temperatures on the original event date of Friday, July 19. Those conditions are “not favourable for butterflies”.

Registration can still be done online or by calling (403) 859-2224.

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Waterton Lakes National Park is holding its annual butterfly count later this month.

It’s one of the longest running counts in Alberta and this year marks the count’s 20^th anniversary. Community members from far and wide are welcome to attend the event on July 19.

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Leading butterfly experts will be on hand to assist attendees explore butterfly habitat, catch the creatures with nets that will be supplied and after identification by the expert, the butterflies will be released back into the wild.

The day will also include snacks and remarks from staffs and guests.

The park said no experience is necessary and park entry will be free to those that register by the end of the day on July 17.

Registration can be done by emailing pc.wlnp-volunteer.pc@canada.ca or by phoning the Visitor Centre at 403-859-5133.

During a single butterfly count at Waterton, as many as 52 different species of butterflies and more than 1,380 individuals have been caught, identified and released.

Waterton is also the only area in Alberta where a large sheep moth has been found. As part of the count, the critical habitat of the half-moon hairstreak butterfly on the Blakiston Fan is avoided. This is to protect the species and its habitat, which is protected under the Canadian Species at Risk Act.

The Blakiston Fan is the only location where this butterfly is known to appear in Alberta. All visitors to the Waterton count are asked to staff off the vegetation in that area.

More information about the annual butterfly count can be found through Parks Canada’s website.

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