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'{{short description|National Butterfly Center in Mission, Texas, United States}} {{Infobox park | name = National Butterfly Center | image = National Butterfly Center.jpg | photo = | image_size = | image_alt = | image_caption = | map = <!-- or | map_image = --> | map_width = | type = | location = Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park | nearest_city = Mission, Texas | coordinates = {{coord|26.180243|-98.364973}} | coords_ref = | area = | created = | operator = | visitation_num = | status = | designation = | website = | open = }} The '''National Butterfly Center''' is a private [[nature preserve]] which serves as an outdoor [[Butterfly house|butterfly conservatory]]. It is located adjacent to [[Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park]], near the city of [[Mission, Texas|Mission]] in [[Hidalgo County, Texas|Hidalgo County]] in the [[U.S. state]] of [[Texas]]. == Background == The National Butterfly Center is engaged in an effort to preserve the 340 species of butterflies found in the [[Rio Grande Valley]] through [[habitat restoration]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/wilderness-resources/blogs/this-all-women-film-team-taking-on-border-wall-behalf-endangered-wildlife|title=All-women film team takes on border wall on behalf of all at-risk wildlife|last=Heimbuch|first=Jaymi|date=December 11, 2018|website=MNN - Mother Nature Network|language=en|archive-url=|archive-date=|dead-url=|access-date=2018-12-18}}</ref> It is considered "the most diverse sanctuary" for butterflies in the United States.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news|url=http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/dec/13/butterfly-sanctuary-border-wall-mission-texas|title='Death sentence': butterfly sanctuary to be bulldozed for Trump's border wall |last=Gilbert|first=Samuel|date=2018-12-13|work=The Guardian|access-date=2018-12-18|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> The grounds of the center are planted with native species which provide nectar for butterflies, and serve as hosts for caterpillars.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=https://missiontexas.us/life-in-mission/attractions/national-butterfly-center/|title=National Butterfly Center|last=|first=|date=|website=City of Mission|language=en-US|archive-url=|archive-date=|dead-url=|access-date=2018-12-18}}</ref> Visitors can typically see over 60 species of butterflies on a visit to the center.<ref name=":1" /> Over 200 species of butterflies have been identified in the center's grounds, including the [[monarch butterfly]], the [[Mexican bluewing]], and the [[red-bordered pixie]].<ref name=":2" /> Habitat restoration has also attracted birds to the center which can not be seen anywhere else in the continental US, such as [[green jay]]s and [[chachalaca]]s.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2018/12/17/i-voted-trump-now-his-wall-may-destroy-my-butterfly-paradise/|title=I voted for Trump. Now his wall may destroy my butterfly paradise|last=Guerra|first=Luciano|date=December 17, 2018|website=[[Washington Post]]|archive-url=|archive-date=|dead-url=|access-date=}}</ref> == Site of proposed US-Mexico border wall == The proposed [[Mexico–United States barrier|US-Mexico border wall]] is slated to pass through the grounds of the National Butterfly Center.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web|url=https://www.expressnews.com/news/local/article/Bulldozers-to-soon-plow-through-National-13447399.php|title=Bulldozers to soon plow through National Butterfly Center for Trump’s border wall|last=Foster-Frau|first=Silvia|date=2018-12-06|website=[[San Antonio Express News]]|language=en-US|archive-url=|archive-date=|dead-url=|access-date=2018-12-18}}</ref> On July 20, 2018, a National Butterfly Center employee was surprised to discover a bulldozer crew clearing vegetation with a chainsaw and a brush mower, in an area which carefully restored with native species, from its earlier use as an onion field. The crew had no paperwork indicating they were authorized to clear this land. Even though the Department of Justice was required to notify the landowner in writing, neither the center's founder, [[Jeffrey Glassberg]], nor the center's director had been informed about the plans to clear the land.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web|url=https://www.texasobserver.org/national-butterfly-center-staff-surprised-by-workers-with-chainsaws-prepping-trumps-border-wall/|title=National Butterfly Center Founder: Trump’s Border Wall Prep 'Trampling on Private Property Rights'|last=del Bosque|first=Melissa|date=August 4, 2017 |website=The Texas Observer|language=en-US|archive-url=|archive-date=|dead-url=|access-date=2018-12-18}}</ref><ref name=":3" /> [[File:Sharpshooter - Oncometopia clarior, National Butterfly Center, Mission, Texas.jpg|thumb|Sharpshooter - <nowiki>''</nowiki>Oncometopia clarior<nowiki>''</nowiki>,]] On August 1, 2018, the chief of the Border Patrol's Rio Grande Valley sector indicated that although [[Starr County, Texas]], was his first priority for a wall, the nearby [[Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge]] had been selected instead for initial construction, because its land was owned by the government.<ref name=":5" /> Filmmaker Krista Schlyer, part of an all-woman team creating a documentary film about the butterflies and the border wall, ''Ay Mariposa'',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/2417384|title=''Ay Mariposa'' Film|website=Indiegogo|language=en|access-date=2018-12-18}}</ref> estimates that construction would put "70 percent of the preserve habitat behind the border wall."<ref name=":0" /> In early December 2018, a challenge to wall construction at the National Butterfly Center was rejected by the [[US Supreme Court]]. According to the ''[[San Antonio Express News]]'', "the high court let stand an appeals ruling that lets the administration bypass 28 federal laws", including the [[Endangered Species Act Amendments of 1978|Endangered Species Act]], the [[Safe Drinking Water Act]] and the [[Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act]].<ref name=":4" /> In a December 17, 2018, opinion piece in the ''[[The Washington Post|Washington Post]]'', the center's nature photographer and outreach coordinator expressed concerns about the loss of habitat and disruption to nocturnal species, and said: {{quote|Right now, in Mission, Texas, we don’t worry about immigrants who crossed the border illegally or drug smugglers. We worry about having to defend our private property from seizure by the federal government.<ref name=":3" /> }} The center's director noted that the local economic impact will also be considerable, and stated that "environmental tourism contributes more than $450m to Hidalgo and Starr counties."<ref name=":1" /> Bulldozers are expected to arrive as early as February 2019 to continue construction.<ref name=":1" /> == References == {{Reflist}} == External links == * {{Official website|https://www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/}} [[Category:Butterfly organizations]] [[Category:Butterflies of the United States]] [[Category:Biosphere reserves of the United States]] [[Category:Protected areas of Hidalgo County, Texas]] [[Category:Rio Grande Valley]] [[Category:Mexico–United States barrier]]'