This page was updated on January 20, 2022.
WISCONSIN
Very few Hine’s emerald dragonflies survive to adulthood in the wild, but TNC and the University of South Dakota are giving them a head start by hatching their eggs in a lab. Last year, 11 immature Hine’s emerald dragonflies were released into state wetlands in Door County, Wisconsin. With any luck, they will emerge as adults with the striking green eyes and yellow-striped body that are emblematic of this federally endangered species. Once believed to be extinct, the dragonfly was found in 1987 at TNC’s Mink River Estuary in Door County, where work to protect groundwater recharge is important to its larvae—and may be the key to the species’ survival.
UTAH
Washington County, Utah, is the only place on Earth where the endangered dwarf bearpoppy is found. At TNC’s 800-acre White Dome Nature Preserve, nearly 95% of the plant’s habitat that had been on private lands has been protected from urban development, habitat fragmentation, off-road vehicles and other threats. In spring, the poppy’s blossoms—sunbursts of yellow framed by delicate white petals—dot the preserve’s hillsides.
TEXAS
A 1,521-acre purchase adjacent to Texas’ Bracken Cave—home to more than 20 million Mexican free-tailed bats, the largest bat colony in the world—was finalized this year thanks to a dedicated Conservancy supporter. It creates an uninterrupted expanse of nearly 5,000 acres, connecting the cave with The Nature Conservancy’s Cibolo Bluffs Preserve. These areas also provide precious habitat for the endangered golden-cheeked warbler and safeguard land over the Edwards Aquifer, which serves as the primary source of drinking water for nearly 2 million central Texans.
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