Chapter 3 North Carolina Species
A large number of species are still too poorly known to estimate their conservation significance. The NCNHP has undertaken a series of insect inventories in the Coastal Plain ecoregion of North Carolina to bring understanding of the distribution, abundance, and habitat affinities for at least a few important groups of invertebrates. Surveys in the Appalachian Mountains of western North Carolina have discovered new genera of Apameini moth ( Cherokeea attakullakulla ) that are highly restricted to their presumed host plant (Hill Cane, Arundinaria appalachiana ) that is found in the foothills and lower mountain elevations (Quinter & Sullivan 2014) . Insect surveys of longleaf pine preserves have reported five new or yet to be described moth species ( Doryodes bistrialis, Morrisonia triangula, Abablemma spp. , and Zale spp). One or more undescribed species are part of species complexes, including the Crambidia pallida complex and Elaphria festivoides complex (Hall and Schweitzer 1992) . The USFWS listed the Rusty Patched Bumble Bee for federal protection as an endangered species in 2017 and North Carolina is within its range. Occurrence records for many bees in the state are from historical records or observation records have not been updated for decades. With the potential for additional federal listings of bumble bee species, the NCWRC collaborated with the Xerces Society in 2021 to address data gaps for bee species. The aim is to collect occurrence data statewide for bumble bees as a means of filling in knowledge gaps. The Southeast Bumble Bee Atlas, a citizen science portal for collecting regional observation data for all Bombus species, was developed and is available online https://www.bumblebeeatlas.org/pages/southeast. 3.10.4 Management Needs If ecosystem-level conservation planning is to succeed, managers must include invertebrates in site management considerations (Hall 1999a) . Wherever possible, management activities should be restricted to only a portion of a given habitat type so that refugia in adjacent areas is provided for all terrestrial wildlife to escape. This is especially true of species associated with ecosystems maintained by frequent disturbances, such as fire, storms, or floods. While vertebrates (and many plants) often have escape mechanisms for coping with unpredictable ecological disruptions, invertebrates typically do not. The only way many insect species survive in habitats maintained by frequent fire, for instance, is through recolonization of recently burned areas from unburned patches of habitat ( Hall and Schweitzer 1993) . The NCNHP has developed a set of guidelines for conducting burns in ways that minimize impacts to rare insect populations (Hall and Schwietzer 1993; Hall 1999a) . Management actions that significantly alter some aspect of an ecosystem are likely to have major effects on insects and other invertebrates. The responses of these species to the management actions may be very different than those of plants or vertebrates, the usual intended beneficiaries of the action. In the worst case, a large number of the unknown but important “cogs and wheels” of the ecosystem may be lost as a result of the action. Keeping
2025 NC Wildlife Action Plan
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