A Hollywood drama of butterfly extirpation and persistence over a century of urbanization

Few long-term examples exist of wildlife population trends in urban environments despite the recent recognition of the importance of biodiversity in cities. Founded in 1896, Griffith Park’s over 1,700 ha in Los Angeles adjacent to Hollywood represent the largest municipal park in California. Through the 1920s, biologists studied the natural area with great interest but in the decades that followed, little fieldwork was conducted here as Los Angeles developed into a megacity surrounding the park. We combined thorough examination of Griffith Park historical field notes and specimen records (1900–1960) with recent field surveys (2011–2012) to determine (1) the extent of urbanization impacts on butterfly extirpation and persistence and (2) how butterfly traits and host plant relationships might be contributing to butterfly species status. Here we document multiple local butterfly extinctions in Griffith Park; 10 species or 18 % of the historically reconstructed community. Many of these species were lost early in the twentieth century, highlighting the importance of the historical record in understanding urban biodiversity patterns and trends. An analysis of larval host plant status and relationships suggests that a primary factor determining butterfly presence or extirpation is the abundance of the larval host plant in the park, in addition to host plant specificity. Despite these extirpations, we also found that the majority (over 80 %) of native butterfly species have persisted including species of conservation interest. While urban parks certainly suffer from surrounding anthropogenic pressure and impacts, this study also demonstrates the potentially high and underappreciated conservation and ecological value of urban parks.