[Leps-l] [leps-talk] Monarch Armageddon

[Chip Taylor]

Well said. I drove through central IL after Thanksgiving in 2011 and 
took lots of back roads through the farmland. You are right, the 
narrow margins from the edge of the road to the edge of the field (as 
narrow as 6ft in some places) contained virtually nothing for 
pollinators, ground nesting birds and rodents that in turn might be 
food for raptors and other predators. Aside from the crops and the 
grasses, microbes and nematodes, these areas are nearly devoid of 
life.

In my lectures, which are joyfully cited out of context, I make the 
point that what is happening to monarchs is happening to all the 
other organisms that occupy the same habitats and that these changes 
are symbolic of larger landscape changes that are underway in the US 
and across the planet. That there is resistance to the idea that the 
planet is changing or that a once abundant species could decline to 
insignificance relative to its past is not surprising. Those who draw 
attention to these changes and advocate that we do something to 
mitigate the perceived problems are attacked. It goes with the 
territory. Negative reviews tend to fall into two categories. The 
most common is denial of the problem, an easy position to take and 
hold on to fiercely, as long as you can justify not looking at the 
data. The second is to declare that the issue is too big to address 
and that we can't do anything about it. Quite honestly, this position 
is harder to refute. Should we passively accept our fate - one which 
we ourselves are contributing to (as Jim points out) - or should we 
attempt to do something about it? Should we hedonistically finish our 
lives and leave the problems we (and past generations) have created 
to the next generation or should we accept some responsibility for 
what is happening and try to address the many problems we have 
created? From my perspective it is better to fail than to do nothing 
at all. And, what will it cost? It's always the cost isn't it? But, 
what will it cost to do nothing? What will we loose if we do nothing?

Saving the monarch migration is only partially about this species. 
The larger message is that it is in our best interest to save the 
habitats used by this species as well as those of all the pollinators 
that that provide the services that support the production of the 
fruits, nuts, berries, seeds and foliage that support all the other 
wildlife - including the leps that most of us find of interest. 
Nature has an infrastructure (e.g. 70% of the plants in most 
temperate communities require the services of pollinators). Is it in 
our best interest to ignore the fact that we are destroying this 
infrastructure? I think not.


>In the 1880's they said the same thing about Passenger Pigeons. It 
>has been estimated that they (only 50 years earlier) were in numbers 
>so large that there were as many of them as there were all other 
>birds combined. I will wager green money if we were not here, they 
>still would be. Anyone that believes we cannot possibly cause they 
>extinction of any butterfly is probably never going to be swayed 
>otherwise, I would rather err on the side of caution. And, speaking 
>from one of the most farmed states in the U.S., I can tell you there 
>is quite a drop in weeds of all kinds, nothing but rank grasses grow 
>in our ditches now......nothing, no color at all. If it were not for 
>a few shielded natural areas and the efforts of some diligent 
>individuals to save something, they would have no where or reason to 
>be here (Monarchs). We've lost several species of other butterflies 
>over the last 15 years here in Illinois for "no apparent reason". We 
>need the other forms of life on this planet to survive, nothing 
>needs us. We really should evaluate our perception of self worth as 
>a species, as a whole we are pretty pathetic and of no benefit to 
>the natural world that I can see. Greed, power and money, that's 
>what makes (our perception) of the world go around, and everything 
>else be damned. It is a shame so many things have to suffer to 
>accommodate our convenience and comfort.....and, I am as guilty as 
>anyone else in perpetuating the problems.
>Jim Wiker
>Greenview, Illinois
>
>PS - I don't want to hear that the analogy about is "different", 
>it's not different at all, if you desire to live with your head in 
>the sand and show your ignorance.....be my guest.
>
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