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When we lived in California, there was a little town down the coast that Monarchs always returned to.
There was a park in town with a small forest that was a Monarch reserve.
When they came back every year the whole forest filled with them.
It was magical.
Then the town politicians sold it to developers who bulldozed all the trees down and built condos.
There must be other towns around that have Monarch forests, but I wouldn't be surprised if the Monarchs have become extinct.
I haven't seen one for years.
That really does sound wonderful & magical. Closest I've come to experiencing something like that with butterflies is at the Bronx Zoo's Butterfly Garden. Observing the kids of all ages is almost as wonderful as observing the butterflies themselves.
& very sad they sold to developers.
I am betting the former 'tenants' loved & appreciated their home much more than the present ones. Hoping they found a new & better place to wander.
.... The garden center had fifty plants covered with caterpillars and with monarch butterflies all over. We saw several chrysalis hanging on pots....
Omg, there are now 16 caterpillars and counting!
That actually shows how dire the lack of habitat is in your location--- Here on my acreage, I have hundreds of milkweed plants growing wild and on any warm, sunny day you can see Monarchs, two or three at a time, in every direction you turn to look, yet, I've only actually spotted one monarch caterpillar chowing down (although many holes on leaves where they had been eating.)
Others here have stated how the Monarchs completely devour their 1 or 2 Milkweed plants = too much competition for a scarce resource.
Your observation is equivalent to the long lines at the soup kitchens during The Great Depression-- only source of scarce food in town for the unemployed.
Habitat fragmentation is almost as bad as no habitat. MIlkweed seed planters of the world unite!
Then the town politicians sold it to developers who bulldozed all the trees down and built condos.
.
All the silly regulations about plastic straws, pesticides, pipelines and carbon taxes are meaningless if there's no habitat left to protect....And the impact of those regs are minuscule compared to habitat loss as a problem.
I just found this thread. I didn't read the entire thread yet. Is it too late in the year to plant the milkweed for the monarchs?
I do not ever use pesticides in my yard yet I have just realized that I have seen no butterflies this summer.
I certainly will be doing these things for next spring and summer at least.
That actually shows how dire the lack of habitat is in your location--- Here on my acreage, I have hundreds of milkweed plants growing wild and on any warm, sunny day you can see Monarchs, two or three at a time, in every direction you turn to look, yet, I've only actually spotted one monarch caterpillar chowing down (although many holes on leaves where they had been eating.)
Others here have stated how the Monarchs completely devour their 1 or 2 Milkweed plants = too much competition for a scarce resource.
Your observation is equivalent to the long lines at the soup kitchens during The Great Depression-- only source of scarce food in town for the unemployed.
Habitat fragmentation is almost as bad as no habitat. MIlkweed seed planters of the world unite!
There isn’t a dire lack of habitat as much as an over abundance of Monarchs here.
I see Monarchs and many other butterflies daily in my yard and not for just a few short months out of the year. The problem here is a longer temperate climate and the need for Monarchs to reproduce prolifically. I checked on my plant this morning to find many less caterpillars. There were two anoles (lizards) nearby who likely had a good meal earlier. Those long lines, in nature, serve as a buffet for others.
What I have learned is the tropical milkweed variety, seen in all garden centers, is not my best choice and can be detrimental to Monarchs in the long run. A monoculture is not good do I’m trying to add more species of milkweed. I have been on the hunt for the three native milkweed species available to me in SW FL. I sowed seeds for one variety I found, but they did not germinate. I’m trying again and using the tropical variety in the meantime. I’m guessing there are native milkweeds nearby I’m not identifying because of the many Monarchs I see.
Many Monarchs & Skippers in my front yard in the last few weeks, mostly around the Butterfly Bushes. The bushes are still making new blooms, & trying to keep up by snipping off the spent ones. My next door neighbor works from home & likely sees more than I do. I planted a bush nearer to his yard but he says they seem to prefer the older & larger one. The one nearer to his yard is a more deeper purple color. Not sure if it makes a difference? They also seem to like meandering around the Crepe Myrtle.
I have had a beautiful monarch in my back yard near my peach tree. He stops by in the afternoon and I was able to get some great photos of him on a leaf and on a peach he was thoroughly enjoying! He has to fight off the hummingbirds for a space on the tree but it is so nice to see him the past week or so!
When we lived in California, there was a little town down the coast that Monarchs always returned to.
There was a park in town with a small forest that was a Monarch reserve.
When they came back every year the whole forest filled with them.
It was magical.
Then the town politicians sold it to developers who bulldozed all the trees down and built condos.
There must be other towns around that have Monarch forests, but I wouldn't be surprised if the Monarchs have become extinct.
I haven't seen one for years.
I remember seeing Monarch forests on a TV show a while ago - it WAS magical to watch, so many of them. It makes me sick thinking how people can just bulldoze the trees and build condos, malls, whatever and all the living things that made their home there are displaced - where do they go? That's why there are less and less Monarchs around, just like the honey bees, and all the endangered living things. The politicians don't think of it boomeranging back - you mess with the ecosystem and Nature is changed forever and it affects everyone in the long run, but for many the mighty dollar and greed overrides the future. There is always a price to pay.
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