Thursday, June 17, 2010
The winter of 2009 witnessed the lowest numbers of monarch butterflies in both Mexico and California. The Spring reports in the Eastern portion of the United States are very favorable. Monarchs found a rich breeding ground in Texas with abundant milkweed for egg-laying and nectar everywhere from frequent winter rains. In fact, monarchs seemed to hunker down in Texas for awhile, raising speculation of their dynamics as everyone watched the sightings soar on Journey North. Then when winds and temperatures were favorable, monarchs took off on the move leading to a record number of sightings in May all the way up to Canada. http://www.learner.org/jnorth/monarch/spring2010/Caption052710_1.html But the question remained: Were there really more monarchs, or were more people aware of their dilemna and looking for them? Only time will tell. We'll hope for the best.
Weather affects monarchs. Not too hot, not too cold....sounds like the Three Bears, right? When temperatures are lower than normal or more rain than normal, the monarch life cycle takes longer. When it takes more days to grow as a larvae or pupae, the number of generations can be affected. Studies indicate that monarchs larvae and pupae only grow between 52.7 and 91.4 degrees. When it is above or below this threshold growth ceases and waits until the temperatures rise within these parameters to continue. Look at the weather maps for May and you can see that the East had warmer than usual temperatures, while most of the West was cooler. http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2010/20100608_maystats.html
Lets all hope that as summer progresses more monarch and monarch larvae will be reported in the West and Southwest. No reports of monarchs yet in June in Arizona. Keep looking! By early July monarchs are usually moving into the state. Keep your eyes open!