''Coenonympha nipisiquit'', the maritime ringlet, is a rare

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...

in the family

Nymphalidae The Nymphalidae are the largest family of butterflies, with more than 6,000 species distributed throughout most of the world. Belonging to the superfamily Papilionoidea, they are usually medium-sized to large butterflies. Most species have a red ...

. It is a "species at risk" in Canada due to

water pollution Water pollution (or aquatic pollution) is the contamination of water bodies, usually as a result of human activities, so that it negatively affects its uses. Water bodies include lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, reservoirs and groundwater. Water ...

and its limited range. Its range is restricted in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

to the

Chaleur Bay frame, Satellite image of Chaleur Bay (NASA). Chaleur Bay is the large bay in the centre of the image; the Gaspé Peninsula is to the north and the Gulf of St. Lawrence is seen to the east.">Gulf_of_St._Lawrence.html" ;"title="Gaspé Peninsula ...

region, between

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

and the

Gaspé Peninsula The Gaspé Peninsula, also known as Gaspesia (; ), is a peninsula along the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River that extends from the Matapedia Valley in Quebec, Canada, into the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. It is separated from New Brunswick o ...

About

The species was discovered near

Bathurst, New Brunswick Bathurst ( 2021 population; UA 12,157 ) is the largest City in Northern New Brunswick, it overlooks the Nepisiguit Bay, part of Chaleur Bay and is at the estuary of the Nepisiguit River. As part of the New Brunswick local governance reform , e ...

by J. McDunnough in 1939. Of the six salt marshes where the maritime ringlet is found in New Brunswick, four of these sites are located within only a 10 km radius in or near

Bathurst Harbour Bathurst Harbour is a shallow bay located in the south west region of Tasmania, Australia. Bathurst Harbour is contained within the Port Davey/Bathurst Harbour Marine Nature Reserve, and the Southwest National Park, part of the Tasmanian Wild ...

. The maritime ringlet is preyed on by birds and larger insects.bathurst.ca: "Monitoring the Endangered Maritime Ringlet Butterfly"
/ref> The larvae feed only on salt-meadow cordgrass (''

Spartina patens ''Sporobolus pumilus'', the saltmeadow cordgrass, also known as salt hay, is a species of cordgrass native to the Atlantic coast of the Americas, from Newfoundland south along the eastern United States to the Caribbean and north-eastern Mexico. I ...

''). Sea lavender ('' Limonium nashii'') is its preferred

nectar Nectar is a sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualists ...

plant. Dr. Reginald Webster, a self-employed

Fredericton Fredericton (; ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of New Brunswick. The city is situated in the west-central portion of the province along the Saint John River, which flows west to east as it bisects the city. The river is the do ...

-based entomologist,cbc.ca: "New beetle species discovered in Fredericton park"
30 July 2014 was responsible from 1993 on for a WWF-funded projectelements.nb.ca: "The Endangered Maritime Ringlet Butterfly"
Dec 2000 that led to the implementation of a recovery plan, monitoring protocol, and successful introduction of a new colony in the

Acadian Peninsula The Acadian Peninsula (french: Péninsule acadienne) is situated in the northeastern corner of New Brunswick, Canada, encompassing portions of Gloucester and Northumberland Counties. It derives its name from the large Acadian population locate ...

Similar species

Coenonympha tullia ''Coenonympha tullia'', the large heath or common ringlet, is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It flies in a variety of grassy habitats, including roadsides, woodland edges and clearings, prairies, bogs, and arctic and alpine taiga and tun ...

'' – common ringlet

References

External links

Canadian Biodiversity Information Facility
Natural Resources, New Brunswick
Maritime ringlet
Bathurst Sustainable Development
Maritime ringlet
Maritime Butterfly Atlas Coenonympha Butterflies of North America Butterflies described in 1939 Taxa named by James Halliday McDunnough {{Satyrini-stub