Urban Rights-of-Way as Reservoirs for Tall-Grass Prairie Plants and Butterflies

• Published in: Environmental management (New York) Vol. 57; no. 3; pp. 543 - 557
• Main Authors: Leston, Lionel, Koper, Nicola
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01-03-2016; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Animal populations; Animals; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Butterflies; Butterflies & moths; Conservation of Natural Resources; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecology; Environment; Environment Design; Environmental impact; Environmental Management; Flowers & plants; Forestry Management; Grasses; Grassland; Indigenous plants; Indigenous species; Land use; Mowing; Native species; Nature Conservation; North America; Plant populations; Plant species; Plants; Poaceae; Polls & surveys; Prairies; Reservoirs; Right-of-way; Roads & highways; Species richness; Transmission lines; Vegetation; Vegetation surveys; Waste Water Technology; Water Management; Water Pollution Control; Wildlife conservation; Manitoba; North America; PNW, Canada, Manitoba; Canada, Manitoba, Winnipeg; Native species richness; Rights-of-way; Tall-grass prairie; Urban transmission line; Butterflies
• ISSN: 0364-152X; 1432-1009
• DOI: 10.1007/s00267-015-0631-9

Urban rights-of-way may be potential reservoirs of tall-grass prairie plants and butterflies. To determine if this is true, in 2007–2008, we conducted vegetation surveys of species richness and cover, and butterfly surveys of species richness and abundance, along 52 transmission lines and four remnant prairies in Winnipeg, Manitoba. We detected many prairie plants and butterflies within transmission lines. Some unmowed and infrequently managed transmission lines had native plant species richness and total percent cover of native plants comparable to that of similar-sized remnant tall-grass prairies in the region. Although we did not find significant differences in overall native butterfly numbers or species richness between rights-of-way and remnant prairies, we found lower numbers of some prairie butterflies along frequently mowed rights-of-way than within remnant tall-grass prairies. We also observed higher butterfly species richness along sites with more native plant species. By reducing mowing and spraying and reintroducing tall-grass prairie plants, urban rights-of-way could serve as extensive reservoirs for tall-grass prairie plants and butterflies in urban landscapes. Eventually, managing urban rights-of-way as reservoirs for tall-grass prairie plants and animals could contribute to the restoration of tall-grass prairie in the North American Midwest.