"dire straits faced by most of our butterfly fauna"
patfoley
patfoley at csus.edu
Fri May 4 18:15:25 EDT 2007
Paul and all,
Sorry to back away from this fascinating topic, but my ophthalmologist
wants me to give up reading for a week.
Carry on!
Patrick
Paul Cherubini wrote:
> patfoley wrote:
>
>
>> Did you just shift your position from 1) There is no problem, so why are
>> these scientists getting hysterical? to 2) The problem is so bad that
>> these scientists can't do anything about it anyway, so why whine about it?
>>
>
> Pat, I havn't been expressing positions. I have only been asking
> questions - such as whether or not it is reasonable for Shapiro to
> assert that most of the 90 or so species of butterflies in the lower
> Sacramento Valley are in "dire straights." So I will repeat and reword
> my last question.
>
> If Art Shapiro and other investigators were awarded millions of dollars
> of public grant money to determine why "even weedy butterfly species
> are not looking good" in the Central Valley, of California, then what?
>
> Two practical hypothetical scenarios:
>
> 1). Shapiro determines increases in the range and abundance of several
> non-native parasites, parasitoids and predators are responsible for
> the declines in both the specialized and weedy butterfly species in the
> Central Valley. Possible examples: Argentine ant, European
> paper wasp, german yellow jacket, a new tachinid fly (Compsilura
> concinnata), multicolored Asian lady bird beetle (Harmonia axyridis),
> the seven-spotted lady beetle (Coccinella septempunctata). Then is
> it even remotely conceivable that Shapiro or anyone else could come
> up with effective and affordable parasite / predator abundance
> mitigation measures?
>
> To appreciate the impact of non-native predators recall that in 2004
> Colorado State Professor Whitney Cranshaw reported the European
> Paper Wasp: "has extirpated essentially every caterpillar in Ft. Collins,
> Colorado by mid-July in the past 2 years and I am sure is having a
> major ecological impact."
>
> 2. Shapiro determines urbanization has been replacing farmland
> on a large scale as shown in this photo taken just south of Shapiro's
> west Sacramento study site:
> http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k75/4af/sac.jpg Then is it even
> remotely conceivable that Shapiro or anyone else could come up
> with effective and affordable urbanization mitigation measures?
>
> Paul Cherubini
> El Dorado, Calif.
>
>
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