74 Butterflies and Bombs How the National Guard Plays a Role in Species Conservation Every year, tens of thousands of soldiers join combat training exercises at Pennsylvania’s Fort Indiantown Gap National Guard Training Center. The 17,000-acre base is also the last natural home of the eastern regal fritillary butterfly. The favorite fields of 74 this rare and striking butterfly are used to train troops on hand grenades, live fire artillery, and tank maneuvers. Despite the butterfly’s precarious position, conservationists don’t want bombing exercises stopped or moved. In fact, The Fort Indiantown Gap National Guard Training Center uses GIS maps and apps to ensure a rare butterfly species thrives amidst the chaos of the bombing range.
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