As this thread is getting away from the original heading of “Forest Ringlets” I have continued the discussion under the heading “Admirals”.
I’m sure it is a similar species but the Yellow admiral we see is found only in new zealand, but I’m not sure if it’s the Red admiral or the Yellow admiral that has similar species over seas, I think it’s the Yellow
The Yellow Admiral is Australasian, I.E. occurring in New Zealand, Australia and other oceanic islands. It is a migratory species in Australia and is thought to make regular crossings of the Tasman, thus “topping up” the NZ population, so it is doubtful whether the Yellow Admiral is likely to be in any real danger.
So you’re saying the Red Admiral is more likely to be extinct before the Forest Ringlet? The Yellow Admiral must be in huge trouble then. But that doesn’t change the way I feel about the Forest Ringlet, I’d rather people be extinct than anything.
Hi Norm
That’s a very good point you raise about the Forest Ringlet and the Red Admiral. Human attitudes to Stinging nettles, especially urtica ferox which is vital to the survival of the New Zealand Red Admiral, needs to change radically if this species is to survive in to the future. I have to admit I feel that the more urbanised and soft (risk adverse) people seem to be these days, the outlook appears bleak. People make such a fuss even in this country where nettles are common and people spend large amounts of time trying to destroy them and create what can only be described as an unnatural, sterile, bland, environment. I get stung every day because of my hobby and I am still alive. Many people who develop serious allergies in this generation could be from a causal effect, stemming from lack of exposure to toxins when young, and the immune system is designed in a way that it needs to be exposed to these things when a child is in development, therefore building up an immunity. This is too deep and off subject to get in to here but I have heard this theory many times from Medical researchers.
However, with the Forest Ringlets, retreat to higher altitudes and the fact it’s food plant does not sting, there is a chance humans will not change it’s new habitat as much as they will the environment at lower elevations.
Cullen,
Once a lowland species, the Forest Ringlet appears to have retreated to higher altitudes, possibly to escape predation, and there are a few areas in New Zealand which still hold sufficient numbers of Forest Ringlets to sustain breeding, these being higher altitude mountain ranges. There have been sightings of the butterfly in areas where they have not been recorded before, so they may well be holding their own, in some areas at least. But like all wild animals with numbers dwindling around the globe, numerous butterfly species are becoming extinct due to human interference by eradicating their environment to develop farming, cropping, housing, and simply to “clean up” untidy looking areas by using insecticides and pesticides.
But by restricting itself to higher altitudes the Forest Ringlet may well outlast our endemic Red Admiral.
Sadly they got to that point if they get any rarer it may almost be impossible to find enough to breed 🙁
Ok, there are currently 8752 left! We gotta do something about it, I’m getting very worried about forest ringlets, in about 87 years they might be extinct if no one does anything.
Hello Cullen
So far as we know, no-one is breeding Forest Ringlets – and the people we’ve spoken with who have observed Forest Ringlets in previous years have commented that they’re “in decline” – meaning in some places where they were once seen they are no longer found.
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