[Pollinator] Popularity may be a boon for monarch butterflies

[Scott Black]

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Popularity may be a boon for monarch butterflies

By Cheri Carlson 

Sunday, November 3, 2013 

Popularity may not be everything, but for the monarch butterfly, it could
help secure its future.

In a recent study, researchers asked whether people thought the monarch's
conservation was important and whether they would spend money to help the
insect.

Of those surveyed, 70 percent considered conserving monarchs important or
very important. The study was released last week by Conservation Letters, an
online scientific journal. 

Results also showed that U.S. households may support a larger market for
monarch-friendly plants. 

"We expected we would find lots of support for monarchs, which is what we
did see," said Jay Diffendorfer, the study's lead author and a research
ecologist with the U.S. Geological Survey.

But the magnitude of that interest and large percentage of those willing to
donate were a bit of a surprise.

Insects generally have less perceived value than other animals, the study
says. For monarchs, however, people supported conservation at levels
rivaling many endangered animals. 

"To us, the study shows that the potential exists for a market-based and
incentive-based system that could generate funds for monarch conservation,"
Diffendorfer said.

That's good news for conservation groups like The Xerces Society for
Invertebrate Conservation, based in Portland, Ore. Its work includes
research, education and outreach about monarch butterflies. 

"We have seen that there is strong public support about the conservation of
these animals," said Executive Director Scott Hoffman Black. 

But the monarch also has a lot working against it, he said. Populations are
in steep decline. The drop is blamed on factors including shrinking habitat,
such as milkweed plants where monarchs lay eggs to groves of native trees
where they spend winter months. 

The western monarch is found west of the Rockies, to the California coast
and as far north as Washington state. During winter months, the
orange-and-black butterflies flock to spots near the coast, favoring groves
of trees shielded from wind and storms. 

They show up bunched together and hanging in groves up and down the
California coast. 

During the past 15 years, their numbers have dropped dramatically, an
average of 80 percent from 1997, Black said. His group works with scientists
at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo to study the
western monarch, including an annual Thanksgiving count.

In Ventura County, volunteers counted 143,000 monarch butterflies in 1997.
Last year, they counted 9,850.

Camino Real Park in Ventura has always been one of the most popular spots.
The monarchs typically show up in October. Last week, the butterflies could
be spotted skipping among the trees.

"They're beautiful. But also just seeing butterflies is kind of magical,"
said Marti Dibble, a Ventura resident who regularly walks near the park. She
wasn't surprised by their popularity.

"It's a special thing for our city and our park," Brenda Christianson said.
On a recent walk, the women spotted a few monarchs, but not the numbers they
remember from years ago.

"When my kids were growing up, they would have field trips here because
there were so many. It was beautiful," Christianson said.

The appeal of the monarch depends on the person, said Karen Oberhauser, a
University of Minnesota professor and co-author of the report. She has
studied monarch butterflies for more than 25 years.

The familiarity of the monarch - celebrated in festivals and a frequent
sight in science textbooks - helps. They also are beautiful and don't have
the creep factor of some insects, Oberhauser said.

"Another big reason: They are just fascinating insects," Oberhauser said.
"The migration is just so unusual and so amazing."

Monarchs weigh about as much as a paper clip and travel up to 3,000 miles.
They find the same, relatively small sites to spend winter months year after
year, despite being several generations removed from the last monarchs to
make the trip, she said. 

"People are just kind of in awe of them," Oberhauser said.

 

  C 2013 Scripps Newspaper Group - Online 

 

 

_______

 

Scott Hoffman Black

Executive Director

     The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation

Chair

     IUCN Butterfly Specialist Group

 

The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation

628 NE Broadway, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97232, USA

 <https://webmail.integra.net/src/compose.php?send_to=sblack%40xerces.org>
sblack at xerces.org

Tel: (503) 232-6639 ext. 101

Toll free: 1-855-232-6639 ext. 101

Cell: (503) 449-3792

Connect with Xerces:
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The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation is an international
nonprofit organization that protects wildlife through the conservation of
invertebrates and their habitat.

To join the Society, make a contribution, or read about our work, please
visit  <http://www.xerces.org/> www.xerces.org.

 

Buy our best-selling book:

 
<http://www.xerces.org/announcing-the-publication-of-attracting-native-polli
nators/> Attracting Native Pollinators. Protecting North America's Bees and
Butterflies

 

 

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