Most years, in midsummer, I’m finding many Monarch Butterfly
eggs on my milkweed. I bring them inside
to let them hatch, grow into fat caterpillars, form chrysalises and finally
transform into butterflies. I’m a piker
in this endeavor. There are many Monarch nurturers more dedicated than I. But
this summer is different. There are no monarchs! They have not returned to New Jersey after
wintering in Mexico.
I’ve checked with Trina, our local “Butterfly Lady.” She says people are still waiting. Last year the butterflies arrived early –in June.
Now, at July’s end, I am the lucky one. Two weeks ago I found two monarch eggs.
Others
have found none. Now I have two chrysalises.
Hopefully their metamorphosis into butterflies will be successful.
Environmentalists have long worried that the numbers of pollinators are greatly reduced. That’s one reason for breeding monarchs; in the wild, 98% of them don’t make it. Some think pesticides are killing them off –as well as genetically engineers crops which have a pesticide incorporated into their DNA. Even the pollen of those plants contains the pesticide!
To quote Trina Paulus’ book , Hope for the Flowers, “Without butterflies the world will soon have
few flowers.” There are many fewer bees too. Without them and the butterflies,
there will also soon be no food crops. Isn’t it time to examine our use of
pesticides and pay attention to the interactions within nature?
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