Story Archives of 'Butterflies'

Driving the back roads of New Hampshire, you might see a couple of men in the their early 60s combing nearby fields.

Longtime friends Richard Gray and David Elberfeld have got a hobby.

Armed with butterfly nets, reference books and a giant red notebook, the two are documenting the state's butterfly and moth populations.

NHPR's Cheryl Senter came across them in a field off Route 4 in Grafton. Click here to view slide show of Butterfly Men

There's a lot to see in the sky during the summer, especially if you know where to look. Bryan Pfeiffer does. He's a naturalist, writer, and photographer. He's also the founder of a nature touring company called Vermont Bird Tours. Lately he's been focusing his attention on butterflies, dragonflies, and fireflies. We'll talk with him about all his projects, including his work with the Vermont Butterfly Survey. We'll also check-in with our local birding expert Iain MacLeod to find out who's occupying New Hampshire's skies these days. Iain is the director of center operations for the Audubon Society of New Hampshire. He's also co-host of NHPR's Something Wild.

Just a couple years ago, the state butterfly had all but disappeared from New Hampshire. The Karner blue thrived in pine barrens from Nashua to Canterbury, but development and overgrown pine forests reduced its habitat. Efforts to save the tiny, silver-blue butterfly are finally showing results. But as New Hampshire Public Radio's Raquel Maria Dillon reports, funding for the habitat restoration program is being held up.

Birds aren't the only ones heading south for the winter. Rosemary Conroy tells us about migrating monarch butterflies and the mysterious 3000 mile journey they will soon begin.

Find our why the State's Butterfly has disappeared.