Poor butterflies :(( and a question for some people

John Acorn janature at compusmart.ab.ca
Mon Sep 25 20:20:48 EDT 2000


Jonathan and Fellow Lepsters,

In my opinion (and I hear this comment often as well) when lay people say
that butterflies were once super-common, what they are remembering is a time
when the Painted Ladies were invading by the zillions-- something that
happens in Canada once every ten years or so.  I hear the same thing from
people with bird feeders-- one winter they get hordes of winter finches
(during what ornithologists call an irruption), and from then on they assume
that the birds have all died off.  This, in my opinion, has more to do with
human psychology than with population ecology, and I really don't think
these ancedotal accounts are a reliable source of natural history
information.

John Acorn
Edmonton, Canada
----------
>From: "Jonathan Sylvestre" <josylvestre at sympatico.ca>
>To: leps-l at lists.yale.edu
>Subject: Poor butterflies :(( and a question for some people
>Date: Mon, Sep 25, 2000, 5:00 PM
>

>This weekend, I made a butterflies exhibit at Villeroy, Quebec, Canada.
>Nearly 3000-4000 visitors came and in those visitors, at least 50, maybe 100
>asked me this question :
>
>"Did you remark that butterflies are more rarer while the years pass ? When
>I was young there was hundred of butterflies every where near the house, in
>the fields, near woods.. but now I don't see butterflies very often even if
>im still leaving far of cities"
>
>I heard such thing during all the weekend... Off course it the same as my
>observations, but im surprise that average people that don't really know
>butterflies remark the decline of butterflies..
>
>Pollution, destruction of habitats, forest, field, rivers, bog, etc..
>urbanisation, .. are the causes...  that was the answer I gave.. but when
>people asked me what we can do.. the only thing I was able to say is that
>they can make a little garden too feed butterflies and their larva.. but
>that will not save all the butterflies they respond me...
>
>So what can each people to help butterflies and moth is my question.. any
>answer ?
>
>If butterflies are an indicator of the nature health..  poor children...
>
>
>have a nice day anyway
>
>Jonathan Sylvestre
>josylvestre at sympatico.ca
>http://fly.to/lepidoptera
>
>


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