Monarchs and Monoculture in southern Michigan

[Ed Reinertsen]

Good evening Stan and all,

Stan wrote:
"Could these kinds of crops
> reduce other populations of herbivores and thus also insect parasites and 
> predators that might also feed on Monarchs, resulting in the contradictory 
> greater abundance?"

This is the same question I had when I saw Paul's picture that he posted
the other day http://www.saber.net/~monarch/larvaeelakota.jpg.

I don't think I have ever seen so many monarch cats in one spot like
this before. They all seem to be the same instar.

Ed Reinertsen


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Stan Gorodenski" <stan_gorodenski at asualumni.org>
To: <LEPS-L at lists.yale.edu>
Sent: Saturday, August 20, 2005 5:09 PM
Subject: Re: Monarchs and Monoculture in southern Michigan


> This is an interesting conflict. Both observers purport to have seen just 
> the opposite with regard to monocultures of transgenic crops. Maybe the 
> growers in the areas Roger was looking at did a better job of eliminating 
> weed growth in the perimeters of the fields, but how do you explain (i.e., 
> to myself) Paul's observation that Monarch and Painted Lady abundances are 
> greater in these areas? Could these kinds of crops reduce other 
> populations of herbivores and thus also insect parasites and predators 
> that might also feed on Monarchs, resulting in the contradictory greater 
> abundance?
> Stan
>
> Paul Cherubini wrote:
>
>>Roger Kuhlman wrote:
>>
>>>The main point of what I had to say was that where agricultural 
>>>monocultures
>>>existed in southeast Michigan presumingly developed with the most 
>>>advanced
>>>technological means there were no milkweeds and no Monarchs except 
>>>perhaps a
>>>fly-by Monarch now and then. From that observation I think it is 
>>>reasonable
>>>to infer that the Summer Monarch population in our area would face great
>>>difficulties if all agricultural lands adopted these practices.
>>>
>>
>>And my experiece has been exactly the opposite: that the most abundant
>>summer breeding populations of monarchs (& Painted Ladies )
>>in the whole USA - are found where there are the most concentrated, 
>>intensive monocultures of transgenic corn and soybeans (southern Minnesota 
>>an Iowa and surrounding states).
>>
>>Paul Cherubini
>>
>>
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