Description
Provincial Parks and other areas where natural vegetation is protected are of great value as the flora and fauna present in them is typical of what was in Alberta before widespread agricultural activities replaced them with flora and fauna that was reduced in numbers and made up of species that were associated with cultivated grains and hay crops. As a result, many of Alberta's "rare and endangered" species are now found only, or mainly, in such protected areas. There is still much to be learned about the distribution and status of lepidopteran (moth and butterfly) species in south-central Alberta. Baseline studies of this sort provide information that helps characterize the species associated with various ecoregions, in the present case Aspen Parkland; determine the status designations (abundant, common, rare, endangered) of various species; show the effects of grazing on species composition and abundance; and allow the examination of many other parameters, including phenology, dry...