Austin, Texas, is home to about 170 species of butterflies. It is also the home of the Austin Butterfly Forum, Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to butterfly conservation and to enriching people's lives through butterflies. The Austin Butterfly Forum is a club that organizes field trips, conducts butterfly counts, promotes native gardening, performs conservation activities, and meets monthly for an educational presentation. We are a community of butterfly enthusiasts who also enjoy dragonflies & damselflies, bees, beetles, spiders and arthropods in general, and our meeting presentations span this gamut as well. Join Us!

Monarch by Valerie Bugh

Meetings are held in the Zilker Garden Center, 2220 Barton Springs Rd., Austin, TX, 78746 at 7:00 PM on the fourth Monday of each month except December.

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July 24, 2017, 7 PM meeting: The Monarch Conservation Movement, presented by Katie Boyer.

The eastern migratory population of the monarch butterfly has declined by 80-90 percent in the past 20 years, which has prompted an international movement to conserve this majestic species.  This presentation will cover monarch biology and the conservation movement to recover the beloved insect.

Katie Boyer serves as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Monarch Outreach Specialist for Texas and Oklahoma, stationed in the beautiful and booming city of Austin, Texas.  In this role, Katie coordinates monarch butterfly conservation efforts with a variety of partners throughout both states in addition to leading outreach efforts to increase awareness of monarch and pollinator decline.  Katie previously served as a listing biologist, working with teams of scientists to analyze the status of species under the Endangered Species Act.  Katie holds a Bachelor of Science in Resource Conservation from the University of Montana and a Master of Natural Resources in Environmental Policy from Utah State University.  After the work day ends, Katie enjoys kayaking, hiking with her two dogs, and checking out Austin’s outstanding live music scene.

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Aug. 28, 2017, 7 PM meeting: Moths: The Mysterious Majority, presented by Valerie Bugh.

Of about 2000 species of lepidoptera found in the Hill Country, only 150 are butterflies. Moths are far more numerous and diverse than butterflies, including more varied lifestyles, far greater size range, and some rather surprising survival strategies. This program will cover both caterpillars and adults, identifying the major families as well as some oddities, and a look at the beauty of these often overlooked insects.

Val Bugh is a local naturalist specializing in the arthropods of the Austin area, with interests in taxonomy and photography. She runs the Fauna Project at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, leads insect discovery walks, teaches entomology courses, provides insect/spider identifications, gives talks to local organizations, and has published pocket guides to "Butterflies of Central Texas" and "Spiders of Texas." Website: Austin Bug Collection