Monarch Butterflies and Milkweed

[some new guy]

Fewer monarch butterflies are crossing North America to winter in Mexico, and the biggest culprit seems to be the disappearance of milkweed in the United States. The trend is particularly troubling because monarchs have long been considered both an indicator of our ecological health and a representative of pollinator populations.

Monarch butterflies travel up to 3,000 miles each fall to their wintering site in central Mexico, which was discovered by National Geographic grantee Fred A. Urquhart and his team in 1975. Once the butterflies arrive, a census by citizen scientists estimates how many have completed the trip.

In 2004, an estimated 550 million completed the winter migration, while in 2013 only 33 million arrived. Further, between 2012 and 2013, there was a 43.7 percent decrease in the area occupied by the butterflies in their winter sanctuaries

http://news.national...cology-science/

BEST - Ron

[Merc14]

Plant some milkweed in those bare spots in your backyard folks and help these beautiful butterflies out.

Edited August 22, 2014 by Merc14