Monarch Butterflies Endangered?

[KCRIVERRAT]

Just saw a story on NBC news with Brian Williams. Their main foodsource, the milkweed plant, is vanishing. I haven't seen Monarchs in numbers flying thru here for at least four to five years now. Absolutely none the last two years. Anybody had the same thing going on?

[fishinwrench]

There seemed to be the normal amount of them around my stomping grounds the last few years. They love Mimosa!

[Jerry Rapp]

the problem is, you were watching NBC's agenda. Go ahead Lilley, yank it.

[Feathers and Fins]

Plenty around here in good numbers

[ness]

Rat -- I've heard the same thing. Kinda scary all the things going on in the natural world these days. Lots of imbalance out there. Haven't seen a Monarch around here in a couple years, but I'm only one data point.

On a related note -- I just read an article saying it was probably not a good idea to walk behind the truck spraying stuff to kill mosquitos back in the 60's. I guess that DDT stays in your system for a while, and there are some side effects. I thought it smelled pretty good, but that's probably not a good indicator.

[Quillback]

I remember fishing on Beaver a few years ago by the dam when they were migrating, one would fly by about every 10 minutes or so. I've also been in Arizona when the migration came through, more concentrated there and you'd see lots of them, low to the ground and flying south. Hopefully it's a bogus news report.

[Bird Watcher]

I actually noticed that I saw very few of them this fall, however, I see milkweed everywhere I look. You could close your eyes and throw a rock and hit a milkweed plant around here. FWIW

[SpoonDog]

Most (if not all) overwinter in a specific high-altitude forest in Mexico. This winter the population is restricted to about an acre and a half of forest. Illegal logging has been an issue in the past, but that's apparently been mitigated. Part of the problem now is Roundup-ready corn and soybeans- the added herbicides kill the milkweed. It's similar to what's happening with quail- modern ag practices are eliminating their food source, and as a result the population declines.

Populations which migrate to adequate food sources will persist, populations without food will disappear. I've read elsewhere that some populations will stop migrating entirely and be restricted to Mexico and the southern US, where food is available year round.

So they may be doomed throughout much of corn country, but they probably won't die off entirely. But look on the bright side- with 2013 being the 4th-hottest year on record, it won't be long before they can make a comeback

[KCRIVERRAT]

Thanks SpoonDog... I miss interrupting my wife while we're sitting on the deck and she's painting her nails and I say "look... there's another one".