next message in archive
no next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects
--Boundary_(ID_BKsZ62gr7RpktQ5vfVoKaQ) Content-type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; delsp=yes; format=flowed Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable Globe and Mail, Tues., July 1, 2008 Monarch butterflies can't get by on a wing and a prayer MARTIN MITTELSTAEDT =46rom Tuesday's Globe and Mail July 1, 2008 at 12:32 AM EDT The monarch is probably the best-known butterfly in the world, famed =20 for the beautiful orange and black hues of its wings and its even =20 more remarkable trait of undertaking an annual migratory journey of =20 thousands of kilometres across North America. Although millions of monarchs exist and the insect is not considered =20 to be in danger of extinction, a new report warns that the =20 butterfly's migration as a natural phenomenon is imperilled because =20 of threats to its habitat. These include the widespread spraying, by =20 farmers and municipal weed-control workers, of herbicides that kill =20 the milkweed on which the monarch's larvae feed. Another problem is =20 the conversion of fallow land into urban sprawl. The migration of monarchs is =E2=80=9Camong the most spectacular and = unusual =20 of the world's natural events,=E2=80=9D says the report, but its decline = =20 =E2=80=9Cis certain unless these threats are addressed.=E2=80=9D The report, issued by the Commission for Environmental Cooperation, =20 the Montreal-based conservation watchdog for the North American free-=20 trade agreement, also says Canada, the U.S. and Mexico each have a =20 responsibility to protect the insect. =EF=BF=BC Enlarge Image =EF=BF=BC =E2=80=9CHabitat conservation and restoration are absolutely necessary = for =20 monarch survival,=E2=80=9D the report says. Mexico and the U.S. have to =20= ensure that a suitable habitat is available in their wintering =20 grounds, while all three countries must ensure that a sufficient =20 breeding and migrating habitat remains available. =E2=80=9CBecause monarchs depend upon a wide range of habitats in = Canada, =20 the United States and Mexico, conservation of the migratory =20 phenomenon requires trilateral co-operation.=E2=80=9D The principle author of the report was Karen Oberhauser, an ecology =20 professor at the University of Minnesota. In an interview, she said =20 that even homeowners can help the butterflies by growing a few =20 milkweed plants =E2=80=93 along with nectar-producing flowers such as = mints, =20 daisies and coneflowers =E2=80=93 around their homes. Adult butterflies = need =20 nectar to power their lengthy migrations. =E2=80=9CIf you think of the magnitude of suburban land and think, if = all of =20 that land was more appropriate habitat for monarchs =E2=80=A6 that would = be =20 a huge contribution.=E2=80=9D She also noted that pressure to plant more corn for use as ethanol =20 could affect the monarchs; it takes marginal U.S. farmland that has =20 been held fallow in conservation reserves and turns it into herbicide-=20= sprayed cropland. Monarchs are the only butterfly to have an annual migration, with =20 some of the insects in the eastern population flying more than 2,500 =20 kilometres from Southern Canada to winter grounds in Mexico. Although monarchs live and breed in Canada during the warmer months =20 of the year, they are viewed as tropical insects because they cannot =20 withstand the rigours of low winter temperatures in mid-latitude areas. There are two distinct populations of migratory butterflies in North =20 America. One breeds in southern B.C. and adjacent areas of the =20 western U.S. and winters in California, while the second breeds in =20 the eastern U.S. and Eastern Canada and winters in Mexico. It is this =20= eastern population that has the most spectacular migrations. According to a Canadian population survey cited in the report, the =20 eastern population passing through the Long Point area on the north =20 shore of Lake Erie declined by 3 per cent over a study period lasting =20=
next message in archive
no next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects