Photos of urban monarch overwintering sites in California

[Paul Cherubini]

What happens to monarchs when the land on which they
overwinter is totally altered by urban or agricultural development?
Take a look for yourself at what has happened in the San Francisco
Bay Area:
 
First look at this map
http://www.saber.net/~monarch/East%20Bay%20Map.jpeg
of the location of three of the four main
East San Francisco Bay Area monarch overwintering colonies:
 
1) The George Corica Golf Course in Alameda, California
2) The San Leandro Marina Golf Course in San Leandro, Calif.
3) The Sky West Golf Course in Hayward, Calif.
 
1. Three photos of the monarch eucalyptus overwintering grove
on the George Corica Golf Course in Alameda, Calif, just north
of the Oakland International Airport taken Jan. 6, 2001:
(there were about 6,000 monarchs there)
 
http://www.saber.net/~monarch/Corica%2044.jpeg
http://www.saber.net/~monarch/George%2041.jpeg
http://www.saber.net/~monarch/Corica%2047.jpeg
 
2. Two photos of the monarch eucalyptus overwintering grove
on the San Leandro Marina Golf Course in San Leandro, Calif,
just south of the Oakland International Airport taken Jan. 6, 2001:
(there were about 5,000 monarchs there)
 
http://www.saber.net/~monarch/San%20L31.jpeg
http://www.saber.net/~monarch/San%20L%2026.jpeg
 
3. Three photos of the monarch eucalyptus overwintering grove
on the Sky West Golf Course in Hayward, Calif,
just north of the Hayward Airport taken Jan. 6, 2001:
(there were about 3,000 monarchs there)
 
http://www.saber.net/~monarch/Sky%20West%2024.jpeg
http://www.saber.net/~monarch/Sky%20West18.jpeg
http://www.saber.net/~monarch/Sky%20West%2021.jpeg
 
All three of these golf course overwintering sites were created
inadvertently during the period between 1930-1975 when exotic
Australian eucalyptus trees were planted during golf course
construction. They are a fine example of how the tree planting
that routinely accompany's real estate development, often
inadvertently creates new monarch habitats (although sometimes also
destroys existing habitats). Thus, it seems inconceivable that California
monarchs could ever "run out" of suitable overwintering habitats
since mankind will always be building golf courses, city parks,
cemeteries and similar green belts within our largest urban centers.
 
Paul Cherubini, Placerville, Calif.
 
 
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