Saving the Richmond birdwing butterfly - Wildlife Australia Guide

Wildlife Queensland is determined to save the rare and beautiful Richmond birdwing butterfly, one of Australia's largest tropical butterflies that is facing extinction due to critical habitat loss.

To help achieve that goal, Wildlife Queensland founded the specialist Richmond Birdwing Butterfly Conservation Network. This volunteer group is spearheading the on-ground restoration of habitat, education of local landholders and communities, and the growing program for the special vines that this glorious butterfly needs to procreate.

Fight to save Australia’s magnificent Richmond birdwing butterfly

ONE OF AUSTRALIA’s most admired butterflies, the Richmond birdwing butterfly (Ornithoptera richmondia) has experienced severe population decline in Queensland and northern NSW since the 1920s.

The decline has coincided with the loss and fragmentation of Richmond birdwing habitats, mainly rainforests, in the 20^th century.

Today, clearing and burning of understorey vegetation, invasion of riparian native vegetation by weeds, and mining of rainforest valleys for volcanic rocks are ongoing threats to the butterfly.

The Richmond Birdwing Conservation Network (RBCN) –