please help us...HERE I COME!

Jere Kahanpaa kahanpaa at gstar.astro.helsinki.fi
Thu Apr 11 08:42:09 EDT 2002


Hi.

Paul Cherubini <monarch at saber.net> wrote:
> You say you are strongly opposed to collecting and trucking 
> butterflies around for release if it is only for show. Do you also 
> oppose those who breed and release monarch butterflies for show? 

Here in Finland this is - at least to this date - a non-issue as releasing 
butterflies for show is almost unheard of (I dimly recall a single release 
of less than <100 Inachis io and other Nymphalids a few years ago) and 
thus I'm not overly familiar with the topic.

The situation depends strongly on the migratory habits of Monarchs.  
Is there a slightest possibility that a release of 'misplaced' Monarchs 
change the migration patterns of wild specimens?

I would not oppose breeding and releasing *per se* as long as it is 
reasonable clear that the released specimens do not harm the local wild 
population or the source population in any way.

> Or would it be OK if the breeders also tagged the butterflies
> for scientific research?  Here is a picture of the new International 
> Butterfly Breeders Association (IBBA) tag that will be placed on 
> monarch butterflies released at weddings and funerals.
> http://www.saber.net/~monarch/tags3.JPG

> "All these people who breed butterflies, their mission statements 
> are so full of biological crap. It's a smokescreen for profit," 
> Pyle says.

Well, I'm tempted to believe in this statement, but it is probably an 
over-generalization: some of the releasers might be 'good gyus', even 
though I cannot see much scientific return of such a release program.

Using pseudoscience as a cover motivation for profiting is in itself 
something that should be punishable by instant vaporization ;-)

Jere
-- 
It's hard to think outside the box when you ARE the box.
                            - unknown, alt.religion.kibology 

 
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