22
|
SPRING
2015
Aswithany farmingoperation, growingmonarchbutter-
flieshasbecomeabig job. It requireshoursofmonitoring,
moving larva, caring for the sickandmuckingout cages.
Theymust keepakeeneye forany issues thatmayoccur…
like finding butterflies that have just emerged from the
chrysieswith bent wings. They have learned to carefully
takeeachwingandgentlyunfold it so theveins insidewill
fillwith fluid.Sometimes thenewly formedbutterflywill fall
to the bottom of the cage and if it is not picked up and
placedonabranch it will not developproperlyanddie.
Over the last twoyearsneighbourshavealso takenan in-
terest in theMorgans’ butterfly operation, so now if they
need to travel out of townduring thebutterfly season they
havebackup to takecareof thebrood.
Onemaywonder, “Whybotherwithall of this?Would it
not bebetter for nature to take itscourse in thewild?”The
Morgansbothpointout that in thewild thesuccess rate for
Monarchsmaturing fromeachegg isonlyabout5%,with
spiders being the biggest threat to young caterpillars.
Whilea carefullymonitored nursery like theirs generally
increases the survival rate close to95%. Becauseof the
aforementioned loss of habitat, environmental changes
andchemicals likeGlyphosate thathaveworked todoom
theMonarchs chances for survival, theMorgan family is
at least trying to level theplaying field. Their hope is that
at some time in the futuregovernments, corporationsand
individualswill realize the importanceof keeping nature
in balance and will work together to ensure that Mon-
archs, honey bees aswell as other endangered species
will begiven thechance to thriveas theyoncedid.
Plants that attract andhelpMonarchs:
Plant commonmilkweed (AsclepiasSyriaca)orornamentalmilkweed (Asclepias Incarnata) in
yourgarden. Bothplantsneedmoist soil and sun. Theornamental variety is lessaggressiveand
veryattractive,while thecommonvarietyproducesmore latexand isextremelyhardy.
Donot cut downor removemilkweedalong roadsidesor vacant lots.
Chives (Allium schoenoprasum).
Very lowmaintenancewith fragrant
flowers…chivesaddamildonionor
garlic flavour toyour favouritedishes.
Butterfly Bush (Buddleia) is an Asian ornamental
that canbe invasive. It is easy togrow, hasawon-
derful scentandprovidesnectar foradultbutterflies,
beesandhummingbirds;buthasnovalue forcater-
pillars as theywill not feedon it. This photo shows
possibly one of theMorgans’ protégés drinking
nectar frommywife’sbutterflybush last summer.
BlueButterfly Flower (Stachytarpheta jamaicensis) is another hardy flower that is native to the
south,but canhandle toughCanadianwinters.Becautious inplantingThebluecolour seems to
attractmonarchshowever, becautious inplantingbecause it toocanbe invasive.
|E|
One of the cages built
by CliveMorgan to
house the
Monarch larvae.
Chives
Butterfly Bush (Buddleia)
CommonMilkweed (Asclepias Syriaca)
ESCARPMENT
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