Frequently Asked Questions

The survey methodologies for HCP partners are contained in the HCP Monitoring Handbook. This handbook is available on this website.

Karner blue surveys are required prior to management activities in the High Potential Range. See the High Potential Range maps for the specific range.

Activities conducted on occupied Karner blue habitat are required to follow the conservation measures contained in the HCP Users Guide.

HCP Partners must submit annual reports with information about monitoring, management activities, land purchase or sales and other information about activities.

Annual reports contain pertinent information about the activities a partner conducted within the Karner blue high potential range. This information is summarized in a form provided by the DNR and submitted each year by March 1st for the previous year. The HCP Partners have developed a webcast to assist in completing an annual report.

The Fish and Wildlife Service requires that land transfers occurring within the high potential range be reported. This is so the new landowner can be contacted regarding participation in the HCP and the various conservation activities that can benefit Karner blues and their habitat. Land transfers must be reported on the annual report unless the land is located in a biological recovery zone. Land transfers in the biological recovery zones must be reported within 45 days of the closing transactions.

The HCP partners typically have two meetings a year as a group. There is one meeting in the winter and one in the summer. These meetings are announced publicly and the dates are available on the HCP Calendar.

Karner blues have two flights a year, one from mid-May to mid-June and the other from July to early August. Each year varies slightly depending on weather conditions and the previous winter. The DNR maintains emergence models for the Karner blues’ flight periods on this website.

The history of the HCP is one of successful endangered species conservation unprecedented in the United States. To learn more about this programs history see the History of the HCP web page.

HCP Partner requirements are outlined in Species and Habitat Conservation Agreements that each partner enters into with the DNR.

The incidental take permit contains the regulatory requirements the partnership needs to comply with. The incidental take permit and the Habitat Conservation Plan are available on the HCP web page.

The Implementation Oversight Committee, or IOC, is the partners’ oversight and decision-making body. The IOC comprises representatives from each of the various entity groups in the partnership. Current IOC representatives and past meeting minutes and agendas are available on this web site.

HCP Partners need to maintain records of all Karner monitoring and records of certain management activities conducted in the high potential range. These records are maintained to all HCP requirements and are verified through periodical audits.

Audits are conducted primarily as training opportunities for partner staff and to verify that on-the-ground activities and monitoring are implemented correctly. The HCP Partners have developed a webcast to assist partners in preparing for an audit.