On a summer day in Michigan, a tiny Poweshiek skipperling butterfly — smaller than a quarter — takes flight over a restored prairie.
To most people, it looks like an ordinary butterfly. But to the researchers watching in the wings, this moment represents something extraordinary. Just a few years ago, scientists feared the Poweshiek skipperling was disappearing forever.
Now, researchers at Michigan State University and their conservation partners have helped pull one of the world's rarest butterflies back from the brink of extinction.
“We were actually able to save that species from extinction,” says David Pavlik, research assistant at MSU's W.K. Kellogg Biological Station and John Ball Zoo, who has spent years helping lead the recovery effort. “We released 102 butterflies in 2022 and more than 1,300 butterflies in 2025.”