terrafirma said:There was an article in our local paper, and I'm sorry, I don't have a link to it… But it said that we should completely cut back our milkweeds that were still blooming, to 'force' the migration of the Monarchs that were 'holding out' here in NE. Fl. I'm guessing that due to the change in weather patterns? Climate change? We are still seeing the milkweeds blooming. And this is causing a problem in the migration...
I'm interested to hear your opinion!
Oh my what a crazy idea! Totally NOT going to work at all!!!! Whoever said that did not do any research or does not have the best interest of the monarchs (or milkweed) in mind! In my area the milkweed has stopped blooming LONG (sometimes months) before the Monarch migrate...ugh. Certainly my opinion the milkweed blooming has nothing whatsoever to do with the migration.
I'm not an expert but there is lots of research done on the Monarchs migration. It is my understanding that the migration is more based on weather and daylight triggers...not weather the milkweeds are still blooming! The adults feed on hundreds of other NECTAR sources on their migration...if there is milkweed they will continue to lay eggs on the way. This is an essential part of the migration and can build up the population.
Edit: I didn't read all the other posts. Apologies for jumping a bit to fast. (removed part of my rant now that I read the other posts)
If this Jaret Daniels has done extensive research that backs up this finding it would be news to me (its contradictory to the other research I've heard). But the Florida climate is also very different from the Ontario climate so maybe they have different life cycle to the milkweed plants there.
~insert pause here~
Ok I took a pause and looked this guy up.
Looks like his recommendation applies ONLY to the non-native Tropical Milkweed (Asclepias currasivica)!! And only in the very southern extremes (the last legs of migration) (can I make that triple bolded?) From his article:
Because Tropical Milkweed Asclepias currasivica grows throughout the year (weather permitting), it can enable Monarchs to continue breeding well into the fall or winter, disrupting their normal migratory cycle. Prolonged breeding can also foster higher than normal infection rates by a lethal protozoan parasite, Ophryocystis elektroscirrha, or OE for short. In fact, recent research indicates that such year-round resources could prolong exposure to parasites, elevate infection prevalence, and even favor more virulent parasite genotypes.
The simple answer to this potential problem is “go native.” An abundant and diverse supply of native milkweed species will contribute to a an abundant healthy population of Monarch butterflies. "
.
Full article can be seen here:
http://www.floridanativenurser...
So I stand my my opinion; cutting down our native milkweeds is only detrimental.
I also would like to see more research done on this before it was put into practice.
