Poor butterflies :(( and a question for some people

[Neil Jones]

In article <IH4A5.295616$1h3.6567752 at news20.bellglobal.com>
           josylvestre at sympatico.ca "Jonathan Sylvestre" writes:

> Hi John
> 
> This is your opinion about my opinion, thats ok...   I think I did not
> written right what I was thinking.. IM not good in english.. but im good
> enough to see that you don't understand what I wanted to mean. . you gave
> too example.. but there are as many example as there are species..
> 
> BTW, could you give to us now your opinion about the decline of world wide
> diversity ??  And please let away human psychology..
> 

Don't worry about your English. Moi, je parle le francais comme une vache
Espagnole. :-) S'il y'a quelque chose que vous ne comprenez pas, demandez a moi
et j'esayerai expliquer.

Certainly there has been a decline in the UK. I have access to the 
latest draft of the data collected for the Millenium Atlas project.
The full details of this will be published in due course.
It shows that many species no longer occupy the same range as they once
did. The eastern part of England has lost most of its Fritillary species.
Wales has lost about 5 species in the last century.
One piece of disturbing research that I have heard of shows that while
butterflies may still be present on a 10Km square basis fewer of the 1Km
square areas contain the species than formerly.
The same thing is reflected in Europe in places like Holland and Belgium.

The cause is modern industrialised agriculture which is wrecking the habitats.
One gorgeous little checkerspot that used to visit my garden when I was a 
child is now so rare that it is protected by law. It is a lovely creature
with wings patterned like the midday sun shining throught the windows of a
great cathedral. 

You asked what can be done. Well, you need to change they way people think
about butterflies. People need to be encouraged to respect them and their
habitats. I think that NABA the North American Butterfly Association 
covers Canada. Join them.

Globally the biggest threat to diversity is in places like the tropical
forests. Don't buy products that endanger these places. Avoid tropical
 hardwoods and it is probably best to avoid "Muck Burgers" as well.

-- 
Neil Jones- Neil at nwjones.demon.co.uk http://www.nwjones.demon.co.uk/
"At some point I had to stand up and be counted. Who speaks for the
butterflies?" Andrew Lees - The quotation on his memorial at Crymlyn Bog
National Nature Reserve