Inner Sunset, San Francisco, California
Green Hairstreak Corridor
Green Hairstreak butterflies are the iridescent jewels of the Inner Sunset. Nectar plants are in bloom right now and the butterflies are in flight, so it’s the best time of year to go see them!
Take a self-guided tour of any or all of these sites, and make sure to adhere to all the physical distancing recommendations.
Best viewing time: mid-day when the sun is out and the wind is calm. We’ve had sightings at 15th Avenue and Quintara Street Steps, Rocky Outcrop Park, the 16th Ave Tiled Steps, and Grandview Park.
If you want to help out more, here are a few great ways:
Support Nature in the City!
Become a member or donate to support this and other projects across the city that help both nature and people thrive.
Help steward a habitat restoration site by removing invasive weeds.
We have put together a video that gives you the basics on how to help on your own. Pick one of these sites and jump right in!
You can now take part in a special monitoring project!
Learn more on this fact sheet, then help submit entries into iNaturalist or via this spreadsheet, and finally, email us your results. Here are all the sites where you can make observations. More information about how to use iNaturalist and other helpful resources are in this folder.
Green Hairstreak Corridor Walk
The Green Hairstreak Corridor restores living habitat “stepping stones” to connect isolated butterfly populations.
What is the Green Hairstreak Corridor?
The Green Hairstreak Corridor is a true urban wildlife corridor of 11 restored public lands habitat sites for the Green Hairstreak butterfly. Our efforts to restore these “stepping stone” habitats between larger wild lands and urban spaces have helped this beautiful butterfly from becoming locally extinct (extirpated) in San Francisco. Our work is increasing the population and strengthening genetic diversity.
Where is the Green Hairstreak Corridor?
The Corridor runs (or flys!) from Hawk Hill, on the corner of 14th and Rivera, to a small triangular median on the corner of Aloha and Lomita, Inner Sunset Neighborhood.
Why is the Green Hairstreak Corridor important?
Butterflies (and moths to a lesser extent) are an important group of ‘model’ organisms used, for centuries, to investigate many areas of biological research, including such diverse fields as navigation, pest control, embryology, mimicry, evolution, genetics, population dynamics, and biodiversity conservation.
Butterflies and moths are indicators of a healthy environment and healthy ecosystems. Areas rich in butterflies and moths are rich in other invertebrates—they are biodiverse.
Invertebrates collectively provide a wide range of environmental benefits, including pollination and natural pest control. Biodiversity is crucial because humans depend on functions performed by the world’s ecosystems. Ecosystems produce oxygen, purify and detoxify the air and water, store and cycle fresh water, regulate the climate, form topsoil, prevent erosion and flood damage, and produce raw materials, foods, and medicines.
How can I take part?
Connecting communities to local nature is what makes this project so successful. Help continue that success - join our monthly workdays by emailing amelia@natureinthecity.org. Do it one time or become a regular - no pressure! Enjoy meeting other neighbors while weeding, planting, or even monitoring species. A perfect way to soak up glorious Springtime days.
Nature in the City Map Snapshot
Green Hairstreak Butterfly at our Green Hairstreak Corridor
Address
Spanning from Aloha Ave & Lomita Ave to 14th Ave & Rivera Street
San Francisco, CA 94116