What to do about Saturniidae declines

Bill Cornelius billcor at mail.mcn.org
Sun May 27 23:17:35 EDT 2001


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Jane: I'd be willing to expose my dissent to the usda's indifference if I knew
who to complain at. Maybe if somebody posted the email address of whoever makes
those decisions, we could present some arguments. They listen to fly fishermen
& raccoon hunters, a few of those people aren't even rich (kin yew believe
it?). when I offered some A. polyphemus ova for free, this person:
Wayne.F.Wehling at aphis.usda.gov  responded to tell me about the permits & fines.
When I asked him about the restrictions on indigenous species, he said because
they are herbivorous (?). My own take is they don't want to have to be
responsible to prove that some egg or cocoon IS a vector or invasive threat,
because someone would have to raise it in quarantine till it's ID could be
proved, which takes time & money. So, like picking deer roadkill off the
highway, they make it all illegal, and they won't have to prove a negative.
Bill

Jane Dillonaire wrote:

>     A friend recently asked me an interesting question that perhaps some of
> you would be generous enough to offer an opinion on.  We were discussing the
> decline of saturniids in the Northeast related to the tachinid fly
> Compsilura concinnata (I was telling her about the article in The Lep Soc
> News).  Her question was: "So what can we do about it?" . . . I was at a
> loss.  I have been raising several local species of these beauties for
> several years now, using them for public educational programs (all ages).
> What efforts can I suggest to the general public (in addition to habitat
> protection & enhancement) to help conserve the silkmoth populations?
>     It also puzzles me that these species are so strictly controlled when
> they are not potentially pestiferous (to my limited knowledge) in this area,
> especially considering the "fly factor."  APHIS currently requires me to
> contain the livestock I've brought into PA and their progeny even though
> they are all indigenous species.   Wouldn't it make more sense to encourage
> releases?
>     What other conservation measures can/should be undertaken to slow the
> decline?
>
> Thanks in advance.
>
> Jane Dillonaire
> Entomology Student - East Stroudsburg University
> Pennsylvania

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Jane: I'd be willing to expose my dissent to the usda's indifference if
I knew who to complain at. Maybe if somebody posted the email address of
whoever makes those decisions, we could present some arguments. They listen
to fly fishermen &amp; raccoon hunters, a few of those people aren't even
rich (kin yew believe it?). when I offered some A. polyphemus ova for free,
this person:&nbsp; Wayne.F.Wehling at aphis.usda.gov&nbsp; responded to tell
me about the permits &amp; fines. When I asked him about the restrictions
on indigenous species, he said because they are herbivorous (?). My own
take is they don't want to have to be responsible to prove that some egg
or cocoon <u>IS</u> a vector or invasive threat, because someone would
have to raise it in quarantine till it's ID could be proved, which takes
time &amp; money. So, like picking deer roadkill off the highway, they
make it all illegal, and they won't have to prove a negative.
<br>Bill
<p>Jane Dillonaire wrote:
<blockquote TYPE=CITE>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; A friend recently asked me an
interesting question that perhaps some of
<br>you would be generous enough to offer an opinion on.&nbsp; We were
discussing the
<br>decline of saturniids in the Northeast related to the tachinid fly
<br>Compsilura concinnata (I was telling her about the article in The Lep
Soc
<br>News).&nbsp; Her question was: "So what can we do about it?" . . .
I was at a
<br>loss.&nbsp; I have been raising several local species of these beauties
for
<br>several years now, using them for public educational programs (all
ages).
<br>What efforts can I suggest to the general public (in addition to habitat
<br>protection &amp; enhancement) to help conserve the silkmoth populations?
<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; It also puzzles me that these species are so strictly
controlled when
<br>they are not potentially pestiferous (to my limited knowledge) in this
area,
<br>especially considering the "fly factor."&nbsp; APHIS currently requires
me to
<br>contain the livestock I've brought into PA and their progeny even though
<br>they are all indigenous species.&nbsp;&nbsp; Wouldn't it make more
sense to encourage
<br>releases?
<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; What other conservation measures can/should be undertaken
to slow the
<br>decline?
<p>Thanks in advance.
<p>Jane Dillonaire
<br>Entomology Student - East Stroudsburg University
<br>Pennsylvania</blockquote>
</html>

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