Project news

This post is written by Maria Gezela and Karolina Baranowska and includes a report about their volunteering experience for LIFE Apollo2020 in Poland.

Honestly, not everyone knows what species monitoring is like. That is why we are going to tell you a little bit about it. First of all, we were volunteers for two weeks in the Apollo Volunteering Program that was created in collaboration with Karkonoski Park Narodowy and Klub Przyrodników.

We started our journey on the first of July and got to know everyone that had also participated in this program and read about the biology of Parnassius apollo. On the second day, we got to know Roman, Grzegorz and Dariusz from Karkonoski Park Narodowy and we learned a lot about Parnassius apollo from them. Firstly, we visited Karkonoski Bank Genów in Jagniątków, where there is Parnassius apollo rearing and we saw and got to know about the process.

Then we went to two quarries “Gruszka” and “Miłek” and we had a chance to release the imago form. It was the first time when we had held the butterflies in our hands. We all tried to be gentle with them, they were so beautiful and really special, not like any other butterfly. On the third day we got to know all the reintroduction sites, how they look, where Sedum maximum and nectar-producing plants are. There were eleven reintroduction sites such as: Chojnik, Podzamcze, Sobiesz, Wały Cieplickie, Piastów, Krzyż Jubileuszowy, Góra Szybowcowa, Kamieniołom “Gruszka”, Kamieniołom “Miłek”, Bobrów and Kruczy Kamień.

On Thursday, we all went to Kruczy Kamień and we finally got a chance to learn the transect and CMR methods. Also It was our first time catching butterflies and it was such an amazing experience, which we learned a lot from. Then we went to Karczma Sądowa in Uniemyśl, which is Klub Przyrodników field station. We had some coffee and talked a little bit, got to know the story behind the restoration of this place, because a few years ago it was completly ruined.

On friday, Jacek, Dominika and Ola were monitoring Parnassius apollo in Cieplice, Piastów, Sobiesz, Podzamcze and Chojnik. Karolina and I went to the Klimatyczne Karkonosze event and we colored wooden magnets, earrings and keychains that looked like Parnassius apollo with the children. Also, we educated them about our extraordinary butterfly.

On Saturday, we monitored Parnassius apollo in Kruczy Kamień and it was a huge success for us, we catched 15 individuals in which 5 were new (2 females with sphragis and 3 males). After Kruczy Kamień we went to Bobrów where something funny happened. We all decided to go around this small part of the forest, but we didn’t expect that we would have to climb back to get to our car. In the end we finally got to our car, but it was so tiring.  On Sunday, Jacek, Dominika and Ola went to Krzyż Jubileuszowy and Góra Szybowcowa. Karolina and I went to “Gruszka” and “Miłek” quarries. That day, the weather wasn’t good, so we saw nothing. Then we had to say goodbye to Ola and Dominik because they were going back home that day. That’s how our first week ended, we learned a lot about monitoring and honestly about everything from Roman, Grzegorz, Dariusz and Kamila. They helped us a lot and to be honest, they are not only great teachers but also funny and helpful.

The second week, we started with another monitoring session. Karolina  and I went to Chojnik, Wały Cieplickie and Piastów. Jacek went to Sobiesz and Podzamcze. Despite the beautiful weather, we couldn’t find any butterflies in Wały Cieplickie, Piastów, Sobiesz and Podzamcze. Just as we needed to end the monitoring, I found one dead Parnassius apollo… right beside me. It was a female with sphragis and she had a number 298 on her wings. 

Of course, our day couldn’t end without some adventure. On the way back from Chojnik to our car, we found sheep in trouble. The sheep was tangled in an electric fence, which we had to turn off and free her from. We also met new volunteers – Ola, Łucja and Magda. We went for monitoring until Wednesday with the interns – Julia and Justyna. For a moment we felt like teachers, because we tried to tell them everything about the butterfly, his biology, monitoring etc.

Thursday and Friday were days off for me and Karolina. On those days, we were able to rest and relax. Beside me, because I needed to defend my bachelor’s degree and I had a lot of problems on my way back to Jelenia Góra, because there was a problem with all trains to and from Wrocław. Luckily, my mum came to rescue me and drove me back to Jelenia Góra.

On Thursday, we also had the opportunity to learn a few things while catching bats. It was a great experience and we all had a lot of fun. On friday, Karolina and I went hiking. We did 16 km and also we were really lucky to see the blackgrouse on our way. It was shocking.

Saturday was our last day of monitoring, Karolina, Jacek and I went to “Gruszka” and “Miłek”, sadly we couldn’t find any butterflies. Magda, Łucja and Ola went to Bobrów, Sobiesz, Podzamcze and there were no butterflies. This last day was hard for us, because our volunteer time was coming to an end but we all had a lot of fun through all these days and  it was such an amazing experience.

From July 22nd to 26th, 2024, the partners of LIFE Apollo2020 gathered in Saalfelden, Austria, for their annual meeting. This yearly event provides opportunity for all partners to engage in discussions, share updates, and collaborate on strategies to work towards the project’s goals. We had the pleasure to also welcome EU representatives Gustavo Becerra-Jurado from CINEA and Edyta Owadowska-Cornil from ELMEN EEIG, who shared their insights and assistence in regard to the project.

Day 1: Office day and Apollo habitat visit

The first day was dedicated to presentations and discussions. This “office day” allowed partners to discuss the projects’ progress and challenges. Meeting in person contributed to shared learning and collaborative problem-solving. As a refreshment break, we visited a local Apollo butterfly habitat (Stossengraben). The day concluded with a joint dinner.

Day 2: Habitat visits in East Tyrol

On day 2, we visited the project habitats in East Tyrol, including Virgen, Hinterbichl, Leisach, and Mörtschach. The highlight of the day was witnessing Apollo butterflies flying in Hinterbichl. To see the butterflies flying is a great motivation for everyone to do even more to conserve the Apollo butterfly species. The journey back to Saalfelden was equally memorable, as we took the scenic high alpine Grossglockner Road. The good weather allowed some breathtaking views of the Austrian Alps along the way.

Day 3: Habitat and breeding station visits and meeting conclusion

On the final day, we visited the habitats close to Saalfelden: Lofer and Fieberbrunn. In Lofer, we had the pleasure to watch a demonstration by dr. Leo Slotta-Bachmay from Naturschutzhunde and his dog, showing how trained dogs are used to search for and monitor caterpillars. The demonstration was very informative and inspiring, highlighting the many possibilities in which dogs can assist humans in reaching their goals. After the habitats, we visited the breeding station in Saalfelden, where Otto Feldner provided an in-depth look at the breeding process of Apollo butterflies. He has been breeding Apollo butterflies for more than 30 years and we could appreciate his dedication to reintroducing the species into its natural habitat.

We used the final closure meeting on day 3 to reflect on the insights gained and to outline the next steps for the project.

The 2024 LIFE Apollo2020 partner meeting in Saalfelden was a success, offering valuable opportunities for fruitful discussions, collaboration, and inspiration. With renewed energy, partners returned home, ready to continue their important work in preserving the Apollo butterfly.

On Wednesday, June 12, 2024, the Czech partner JARO released 50 Parnassius apollo butterflies into the Krkonoše mountains! They set out to inspect the quality of the environment, which we have been preparing for them in cooperation with many partners for the third year as part of the LIFE Apollo2020 project.

David Číp from the International Conservation Group JARO told that the release of the Parnassius apollo into the wild was preceded by the modification of a selected and undisclosed location to suit the butterfly, which is at risk of extinction in the Czech Republic and abroad. The organizers of the project perceive this butterfly, which became extinct in the Czech Republic in 1935, as a symbol of the protection of mountain nature. In the 1980s, it was managed to return to Štramberk in northern Moravia, where a weak population still lives.

“Now, together with the KRNAP Administration, the Škoda Auto Foundation and other partners, we are trying to return him to Bohemia, where he last lived in the Krkonoše and Podkrkonoše about 100 years ago. We have been trying for the return of rare ash trees for the third year,” said David Číp. Last year, an attempt at the first test release of butterflies failed due to complications at the butterfly rescue station. “However, the breeding technology was modified, so this year the third generation hatched, which can finally go out,” said Číp.

Conservationists will observe whether the butterflies will thrive in the restored conditions of the Krkonoše nature. “The experts we work with believe that we have managed to restore the conditions for Parnassius apollo in the field to such an extent that it could be enough for the Apollos to stay in the place we are preparing for them after release,” said project coordinator Tereza Macečková from the Group JARO.

So far, conservationists have released only males, so that possible losses of difficult-to-bring individuals are as small as possible. “Females are the most valuable for further breeding. However, if the released males are kept, they start behaving naturally, looking for females that hatch only after the males in the wild, and they stay here for several days after release, the chances of their permanent settlement will be much greater,” said Číp.

According to him, next year it will make sense to release the females as well and try to move to the last final phase of the project, when the Apollos could start to reproduce in the wild. “At the moment, we are roughly half way there, although perhaps the hardest part is behind us,” said JARO Group butterfly breeder Miloš Andres. According to him, the breeding of rare species of butterflies is very demanding, even if it is “only” about rearing the eggs to the adult stage. The most demanding task, which takes several years, he identified as the preparation of the environment for the butterflies in combination with their release without the need for additional reinforcements from breeding.

Conservationists keep the butterflies secret instead of releasing them to prevent them from being caught by a collector. They wrote a number on the top of each butterfly’s wings. “It is both for the sake of records, but also for their protection. They are so worthless to potential collectors,” said Číp.

Last year, conservationists in the Krkonoše improved about a hectare of overgrown rocky terrain and already noticed the spread of rare species of flowering plants and insects, which occur sporadically in the Krkonoše due to lack of space. The project is also focused on the restoration of entire biotopes, taking care of Parnassius apollo helps to protect other sensitive species. “Hopefully the released males will give us hope that we are moving in the right direction and we will have the chance to meet this beautiful butterfly in the Krkonoše Mountains permanently,” added Radek Drahný, spokesman for the KRNAP Administration.

The practical part of the LIFE Apollo2020 international project to protect the Apollos, one of Europe’s most endangered butterflies, started in 2022 in several areas of Central Europe. The mission for his return to the Krkonoše Mountains is carried out by members of the JARO Group in cooperation with the Czech and Polish Krkonoše Mountains National Park, the Nature and Landscape Protection Agency and a number of other Czech and foreign organizations.

The mission for the return of the king of butterflies to the Krkonoše Mountains will be implemented from 2021 by members of the JARO Group in cooperation with the Administration of the Giant Mountains National Park, the Nature and Landscape Protection Agency, members of the Czech Entomological Society, employees of the Entomological Institute of the Biological Center of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic and partner organizations from Poland, Czechia and Austria.

As our project continues, so does our centre (Education and information centre Bílé Karpaty) continue to create educational and teaching aids. But how to test if these tools work as we imagined? The best way, of course, is to try them out directly while working with the children for whom they are primarily intended. The best time for such a trial is when setting up the Apollo Gardens, which have been introduced on this website before (for example, in the article Two Apollo Gardens built).

We have managed to build four such gardens in the past year, each in partnership with a school. All four gardens are raised beds that we have constructed in a pre-selected location. The rest was up to the children. With undisguised joy and enthusiasm, the children became gardeners and filled the bed with soil and levelled its surface. They then placed larger and smaller stones, which they had brought themselves, on a part of the bed to create a small rock garden. They poured silica sand into the slits between the stones.

Then came the main thing. Since the Apollo Gardens are meant to be an environment for both adult butterflies and their caterpillars, the prepared bed needed to be enlivened with nectarous plants for the adult butterflies and host plants for the caterpillars. The children planted white stonecrop plants in the sand of the rock garden and randomly planted small common houseleek among them. Although it is not an important food plant for caterpillars, caterpillars can occasionally use it and it is a nice diversion to the rock garden. Next to the rock garden, the children planted great stonecrop – another important food plant for caterpillars.

What about the rest of the bed area? The children had already guessed that the flowering plants that the adult butterflies need to live would come here. We provided meadow plant mix seeds for this purpose. A significant part of this mixture consisted of seeds of the Apollo´s favourite plants (various pink and purple flowering plants) and the rest of the seeds were other meadow plants to make the bed more varied, attractive to other pollinators and to keep it flowering for as long as possible.

An indispensable part of creating each bed was the time we spent with the children talking about the life cycle of butterflies, their importance in nature and other things. Of course, we also introduced in detail our main hero, the Apollo butterfly, the reasons why it has disappeared from our nature and how we can help it. At this point it was also our turn to try out some of the tools we had already created. A great success was always achieved by the Apollo pupa, several meters long, which the children climbed through, and on the other side, an adult Apollo emerged from them. Equally enthusiastic was the preparation of a sweet drink (represented nectar in flowers for the adult butterflies) and tattoos with all the developmental stages of the Apollo.

We have not only used the tools and materials to build Apollo Gardens, but also at several other events for the public. The children enjoyed the activities and we believe they will not forget Apollo right away. Among other things, it was confirmed to us that even ordinary coloring according to a template still has its charm and can entertain children.