As someone who loves butterflies (who doesn’t) and with the goal of creating a butterfly garden that will attract as many butterflies as possible, I thought it might be beneficial to attend the El Segundo Blue Butterfly Walk presented by the South Bay Parkland Conservancy. There is no charge to attend one of these walks presented by two biologists and board members of the conservancy.

I first heard about the El Segundo Blue Butterfly as an endangered butterfly featured on my Theodore Payne t-shirt. These butterflies have their primary grounds on the range from Dockweiler Beach to Torrance Beach which is about a 10 mile stretch of the West Coast, just south of LAX.

The El Segundo Blue Butterfly has specific needs preferring the dunes off the coast and feasting only on the Sea Cliff Buckwheat. Butterflies only emerge during the summer for a few weeks and then they will feast and mate. The lifespan of an adult butterfly is short–for only a few days. The eggs will be hidden within the leaf litter of the buckwheat and will have a pupal stage of nearly a year.

The time to see the butterflies is between the end of June and first few weeks of July. For better viewing, catch them on a less windy day and preferably in the morning and before the late afternoon. These butterflies are fast. They are also extremely small, about the size of a thumbnail. It is smaller than some of the small blue butterflies I have seen in my garden. The males are a vibrant blue while the females are brown.

One of the biologists told us how she and her science students helped replant one of the dune areas of Torrance Beach with the Sea-Cliff Buckwheat as a science project. They removed invasive ice plants, planted and watered the buckwheat, while saving seeds to grow more plants. Within two years of nurturing the dune area, the revitalization has lead to an increase in butterflies.

The common theme among butterflies and trying to increase them in your garden or for our environment is to establish a healthy habitat for them. We can eliminate the use of pesticides and plant more native plants. To attract butterflies, you must plant the specific host plant for the butterfly to lay larvae on and have flowering nectar plants to attract and feed butterflies.

I highly recommend the walk as you will learn about the butterfly and the biologists can answer any questions you may have. You will also see the butterflies in their intended environment in the dunes with people going about their business. I don’t live near this section of Los Angeles County, but to learn about the El Segundo Blue Butterfly and the revitalization efforts of the South Bay Parkland Conservancy brings a sense of renewal and purpose.

Note: There is an area located near LAX called the El Segundo Blue Butterfly Preserve and is not open to the public. For more information, visit the South Bay Parkland Conservancy. Reminder that the walks are only available three weeks in the summer and you must sign-up in advance.