Monarch butterflies drop ominously in Mexico

[hue]

Source: USNews Science

MEXICO CITY (AP) — The number of Monarch butterflies making it to their winter refuge in Mexico dropped 59 percent this year, falling to the lowest level since comparable record-keeping began 20 years ago, scientists reported Wednesday.

It was the third straight year of declines for the orange-and-black butterflies that migrate from the United States and Canada to spend the winter sheltering in mountaintop fir forests in central Mexico. Six of the last seven years have shown drops, and there are now only one-fifteenth as many butterflies as there were in 1997.

The decline in the Monarch population now marks a statistical long-term trend and can no longer be seen as a combination of yearly or seasonal events, the experts said.

But they differed on the possible causes...



Read more: http://www.usnews.com/science/news/articles/2013/03/14/monarch-butterflies-drop-ominously-in-mexico

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This is really a true barometer of the health of our world!! Numbers of Monarchs have been steadily decreasing for almost a decade!!

[JDPriestly]

1. Two hatched in my yard this past summer. I saw their cocoons.

I saw one of them hatch.

I hope they made it.

My guess for the reason for the decline: People are killing weeds. The Monarchs love milkweed. We need to grow more of it. It is very invasive so I suspect that people get rid of it.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30425804@N03/8212159684/

That is not my milkweed but an example of what looks to me like maybe a Monarch caterpillar on a milkweed stem.

More: From Audubon of Florida

http://audubonoffloridanews.org/?p=11351

A monarch's emergence. It is amazing to watch the Monarch leave its cocoon. Once it releases itself, it quickly gains in size. You can watch it grow.

My monarchs were not on the milkweed but were on another plant when they left their cocoons. It is a beautiful process that reminded me to contemplate the miracle of life.

I hope everyone will look at the pictures. I did not know what to look for. Now that I do, I know to leave the caterpillars, cocoons and butterflies alone and enjoy watching them live in my backyard.

Watch out for these beautiful creatures. They need our protection.

[efhmc]

2. Link not working for me.

[MuseRider]

7. I have lots of milkweed on my farm

I only killed it in the two horse pastures before. Before I used to pull it out anywhere the goats would eat. Now I leave it. Not good for horses, they don't eat it anyway. Not good for goats, they nibble and move on. Silly how we have been taught to remove or kill plants.

Now I have a lot of it, wish I did not have quite so much but the butterflies need them so they stay. There are so many kinds and some are quite beautiful and some smell wonderful.

This is a sad article, we are killing ourselves in the long run and making what life we have left a lot more boring. Not to mention we just should not be killing so many things for profit.

[Plucketeer]

11. Yeah

As lore would have it, we were given dominion over the earth and it's inhabitants. The whiz-dumb of our stewardship is now becoming evident.

[MuseRider]

37. Perfectly stated! n/t

[hue]

15. Thank You for this post and sparing the "Milkflower" on Your farm!

[JDPriestly]

25. It isn't a farm. It's a small lot in Los Angeles.

My neighbors also grow milkweed for the monarchs. We are in it together.

[MuseRider]

38. What would life be like without butterflies?

You use what you want to use but always leave some for the animals and others. That is the only way. I "claim" ownership only because that is how things are done in this society but in truth it never belonged to me. I just try to take care of it. I prefer it that way. Sharing is always more fun and way cooler. Saw my first fox ever in front of my house jumping over the 4 foot native prairie just yesterday. Waaaay cooler this way.

[xxqqqzme]

17. When we had our farm

we left the milkweed growing along the perimeter of the hayfield near the creek. We would find butterflies, our bees and birds watering in the little puddles on the uneven boulders.

[MuseRider]

39. :-)

A wonderful memory. Makes me smile. Those little places that we either create or let be provide many surprises and beauty.

[xxqqqzme]

40. It was a little bend in the creek w/

a small sandy 'beach'. It was the kids favorite spot to play.Thirty years later, they still talk about it.

[hue]

14. Thank You for protecting the Monarchs. I call milkweed "Milkflower"--it is not a weed. :-)

Monarchs and other butterflies emerge from chrysalis, not cocoons. Thanks for the emergence pics--always beautiful!!

Here is a FB link to MonarchWatch: http://www.facebook.com/monarchwatch

[mike_c]

3. holy shit-- look what was posted on Entomol-L 11 days ago....

Entomol-L is a listserve of (mostly) professional entomologists. Here's a post from March 3, in part of a conversation about the poor quality of media reporting on science.

Or the university scientists and conservation groups work together to mold the behavior of the media to their liking in a predictable manner.

Real life upcoming example:

I can predict in advance, with virtual 100% certainty, that a worldwide media blitz will be launched sometime within the next 3 weeks announcing a record low census count of monarch butterflies at the overwintering sanctuaries in central Mexico.

It will be a carefully orchestrated news release - planned months in advance - designed to get reach most of the major newspapers and news distribution websites. It will put certain conservation groups and university scientists in the world spotlight - which helps them generate donations and dues paying members.

Groups like the World Wildlife Fund - Mexico and familiar high profile monarch butterfly scientists. In the article the scientists will try - as is fashionable today - to tie the record low number of butterflies to anthropogenic causes like climate change and GMO crops and they will encourage the public to visit their websites to donate money or buy some of the products they sell. http://www.monarchbutterflyfund.org/ http://shop.monarchwatch.org/

So stay tuned for the upcoming show.

[closeupready]

4. If true, that's highly unprofessional and irresponsible.

[mike_c]

6. the poster is a somewhat regular gadfly...

...but is a (generally) respected entomologist. I say generally because he is something of a traditionalist with strong ties to the ag industry and therefore a bit of an outlier among the mostly academic types that are the mainstay of Entomol-L, but still. His professional credentials are not disputed, but his opinions often are. Nonetheless, that was quite prescient.

on edit-- note the post down thread from littlemisssmartypants who links shop.monarchwatch.org, just as the Entomol-L poster predicted. This is kind of creepy.

[closeupready]

8. Okay, wasn't aware of that.

Thanks.

[JDPriestly]

26. As one who has seen monarchs emerging, I think it is highly professional and

responsible.

We who live on the Pacific Coast (California basically) can do a lot to promote monarch butterflies just in our own backyards.

I'm not a farmer. I don't need to choose whether to grow GMOs are not. It is a matter of letting beautiful flowering plants that need little water and cause no trouble grow on my lot.

I also get oodles of bees because I allow certain weeds to grow in my backyard.

We need to learn to work with nature instead of fighting it all the time.

Science is trying to help us learn to do that. So thanks to the responsible professionals who are alerting us to the things we are doing to our environment that we could improve.

Many of my neighbors get annoyed with milkweed because it spreads so fast, but if we don't let it grow where it really does not cause a problem, we will deprive our grandchildren of the beautiful sight of a monarch butterfly. My mother in the Midwest used to get them in her front yard. The monarchs unite us with people in Mexico and with people in the Midwest. This is their earth just as it is ours. Let's share.

We can share our earth without starving ourselves. I'm convinced of that.

My husband notes that some on DU belong to the ranks of those who want more parking lots.

In LA, people hire gardening crews that come in and just chop everything up that isn't grass growing about two inches at the most high. It's very sad and gets very ugly. It also wastes a lot of water -- water we don't have to waste.

I love my milkweed and my monarch butterflies.

[closeupready]

28. You think it's highly professional to mislead the public?

Great. Noted.

[hue]

32. Wow! I love Your response (not just to this thread but to Nature and life around You! Thanks!

[appal_jack]

9. So he knows when the monarch census happens. So what?

So the entomologist you quote knows when the monarch census happens. So what? I'm not an entomologist by profession, and yet I recall that the population numbers from the winter refuges are released every year about this time. That environmental groups choose to highlight these numbers, especially when they show a long-term and consistent decline, is not evidence of any ill intent.

Methinks your entomologist has an axe to grind.

-app

[The Stranger]

10. Preparing to release a study on butterflies is "molding the behavior of the media to their liking?"

Sounds like an ag industry plant out to prevent "donations and dues paying members" from trying to save what is left of this God-forsaken planet.

[hue]

16. Monarch watchers knew last fall by watching the migrations, way stations &weather that #s were small

The commentary mike_c posted above was no miracle prediction. Notice how the author gives the link to the Monarch Watch shop which was heavily requested by members of that & other conservation groups. The article puts an evil spin on facts that are established: Monarch numbers, their habitats and nectar sources are steadily diminishing.
Here is Monarch Watch's mission statement (founded in 1992):

Monarch Watch is a nonprofit education, conservation, and research program based at the University of Kansas that focuses on the monarch butterfly, its habitat, and its spectacular fall migration.

Mission
Monarch Watch strives to provide the public with information about the biology of monarch butterflies, their spectacular migration, and how to use monarchs to further science education in primary and secondary schools. We engage in research on monarch migration biology and monarch population dynamics to better understand how to conserve the monarch migration. We also promote protection of monarch habitats throughout North America.

[mike_c]

21. yes...

As I noted subsequently, the poster who made that comment is often something of a contrarian on the entomology listserve. I was taken aback by the precision of his prediction, and the degree to which his cynicism was confirmed by media events.

on edit-- Please don't misconstrue my comments as in any way minimizing the consequences of overwintering habitat destruction and the other population pressures undermining the success of monarchs (and a whole host of other insects as well).

[NickB79]

35. He's playing the odds, nothing prescient about this "prediction"

Just like charlatans who claim they can read your mind or talk to your dead relatives.

-It's widely known that monarchs have been in trouble. Even before this past year's survey, we saw drops in 5 of the last 6 years. It's not hard to predict that this year would also see a drop, given the odds from previous years.

-Of course there would be a worldwide outcry from global media and conservation groups. The monarch butterfly is an iconic species, beloved across the Americas. And conservation groups do get their primary funding from donations by concerned citizens. Again not hard to predict.

-And of course it would be tied to anthropogenic causes in the media, because THAT'S WHAT THE SCIENCE HAS BEEN SAYING FOR YEARS! We've known for a long time that cutting down their wintering forests and plowing up milkweed patches reduces their reproductive success.

This guy's "eerily accurate" prediction is anything but. It ranks right up there with me predicting that the grass will be green by April and I'll have apples on my apple tree sometime in Sept.

[littlemissmartypants]

5. Plant Milkweed...

Item #: 137491

Our Milkweed Seed Kit contains three (3) varieties of milkweed - the monarch butterfly's exclusive host plant. Included are the following to help you create or enhance your monarch habitat:

Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa)
Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca)
Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)

Seeds come in individual packs (approximately 40 seeds each) printed with planting and other information. Additional species and planting details are available on our website at www.monarchwatch.org/milkweed/
Availability: In Stock
Usually ships in 5 to 7 business days
Price: $10.00
http://shop.monarchwatch.org/store/p/1185-Milkweed-Seed-Kit.aspx

[JDPriestly]

29. My experience: Once you plant it, you never need to plant it again.

The seed kits would be great for children, but it's easy to save your own Monarch seeds after the first year.

[Sunlei]

12. Their winter refuge forest in mexico is much smaller, thinner.

Outside of Houston we used to see monarchs regular on their migration to Mexico. Very rare to see any these past couple years. Have noticed more dead than living.

Haven't seen any lightening bugs over my meadows in many years. Not a single hummingbird these past 2 years. The tiny tree frogs are totally gone, it's rare to see a night toad yet those white foreign night lizards and african fire ants are all over the place. Saw 2 robins last spring when there used to be dozens. Wonder if any robins will come this spring?

What was really weird were the 2 nests of mockingbirds during the warm spell in December!? When it froze in January about 6 fledglings, barely pin feathered, died. no bugs, starved/froze. Was very strange to notice birds nesting off season like that.

[xiamiam]

13. i live in nor cal..we have lots of monarch butterflies..or used to..lately however

in the past decade, i've noticed a significant decrease in all insects. It is alarming. I'm in an agricultural area. First, I noticed the bees..then the ants, I hate ants in the winter after the rains sneaking in the house..but even the ants aren't here. Monarchs used to be passing by and always dozens in the yard on their annual trek..I don't know whats happening. I just note that there are a lot less insects..like 80% less. I'm allergic to bees but I could always hear them working ...bzzz..bzzz..bzzz..so we had a mutual respect and they were loud depending on which flowers they were harvesting ..Its strange and i dont like it.

[RebelOne]

18. I live in North Georgia and would have a real ant problem

in the spring and summer. Plus, I had a mound of fire ants in my yard. Within the past 5 years, they have all disappeared. Not a single black ant or fire ant to be seen. But I am glad they are gone.

[mike_c]

22. interesting comment about fire ants....

Did you have unusually cold and wet periods? Fire ants really thrive on heat-- that's what those mounds are about. They are hotter than the soil beneath.

[xiamiam]

30. well, yeah..me too..except that it is wierd..and unnatural..nt

[NickB79]

36. Maybe Asian needle ants have moved in?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2284741/War-ants-intensifies-Asian-species-Argentines-U-S.html

Asian needle ants, an aggressive species with painful stings, is on the march, winning territory from Argentine ants, the U.S.'s most famous invasive species.

The Asian ants are not just a worry for the Argentine ants, but also for humans. They cause itchy bites on people that can cause anaphylactic shock, a severe reaction that can result in death, if the person is allergic.

Argentine ants were very successful as an an invasive species, spreading across the country with their territorial behaviour and super-colonies, having arrived in the U.S. in the 19th century.

[mike_c]

24. norcal populations overwinter in groves along the coast...

...e.g. at Pismo Beach and Pacific Grove, and so are generally less impacted directly by overwintering habitat destruction in Mexico.

[sendero]

31. Interesting.

.... I live on an acreage in north TX. I've noticed a serious decline in fire ants over the last 3 years or so in particular.

I couldn't say that I see the same decline in all insects, but the fire ants are particularly noticable as they are such a nasty pest.

[bvar22]

19. Enjoy them while you can.

The Monarch Butterfly will soon be sacrificed to what some call "progress".

Monarch's migrate from Central Mexico to as far north as Canada on a yearly cycle.
No single Monarch lives long enough to complete the entire migratory circuit,
yet somehow this migratory "knowledge" is passed on.



Minneapolis (Central Minnesota) is the northern Summer grounds for millions of Monarchs,
and I had the opportunity to spend a Summer photographing these awe inspiring insects in 2004.

[hue]

33. Lovely!!! Thanks!!!

Last edited Thu Mar 14, 2013, 06:18 PM - Edit history (1)

Edited to add: I can see the dark widening of the vein on Your Monarch's hind wing which designates He is a male! He stores His pheromone there and releases it in the air. A female can sense it over a mile away!

[librechik]

20. how many times must Mother Nature warn us

before we wake up and do something? And I'm not talking about you and me, I'm talking about the powerful monied interests who control how much carbon gets into our atmosphere. They are in a position to change their ways and make a difference.

[AngryAmish]

23. Remember there was a drought last summer

[Cleita]

27. There was one fluttering in my yard last week, but if the birds

didn't eat it, for sure it died last night because it we had a drastic drop in temperature overnight. Just a few years back before we started getting drastic climate events, I always had a lot of them in spring and summer, but not in recent years.

[hue]

34. Monarch Watch Director Chip Taylor's response to the official overwintering monarch population

survey results.

http://monarchwatch.org/blog/2013/03/monarch-population-status-18/

The World Wildlife Fund-Mexico / Telcel Alliance, in collaboration with Mexico’s National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (CONANP), held a press conference late on the 13th of March 2013 to announce the results of the status of the monarch populations that overwinter in the oyamel forests of Mexico. Measures of the areas occupied by each of the nine monarch colonies in the states of Michoacan and Mexico totaled 1.19 hectares. This number represents a decline of almost 59% from the area occupied the previous winter. Further, this population is the smallest recorded since the monarch colonies came to the attention of scientists in 1975. A visual inspection of Figure 1 reveals a clear downward trend in the population:....