Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy

I thought it would be interesting to do a monthly posting on Monarch butterflies: where they are and how they’re doing throughout the year. I’ll apologize in advance for the news in this post because it’s a bit of a downer but hopefully the news of the Monarch populations will improve as we move through the year.

For those who attended my program on Monarchs this past year, you know that they have a pretty interesting lifecycle that takes them through 4 generations of butterflies over the course of the year with the fall generation being the one that makes the epic journey all the way to Mexico! They rely on habitat here and in Mexico and both are under threats of different sorts. That, combined with the usual challenges of weather that they face make the great Monarch migration an endangered phenomenon.

But let’s kick off with catching up with our Monarch friends - those Monarch butterflies that you saw in late August, September and into October flew 2,000 miles to a very special mountain area near the town of Angangueo, Mexico. That is where they are right now: in a tiny mountain forest area outside of Mexico City, at an altitude of around 8,000 – 10,000 feet, clinging to branches of Oyamel pine trees, resting and awaiting the change in season so they can breed and begin the migration back.

Unfortunately, the numbers this year are at an all-time low. The World Wildlife Fund’s Mexico staff have been monitoring the number of monarchs and I saw this report from them posted by Monarch Watch. The places I visited last February and showed in my program were the three colony sanctuaries mentioned in the report below:

“The news is not good. The total area occupied by monarchs at the overwintering sites in December was 1.92 hectares. Only 7 colonies were found. The three largest colonies El Capulin (Cerro Pelon) 0.53ha, El Rosario 0.50ha, and Cerro Prieto (Chincua) 0.47ha constitute 78% of the total area. The totals for both hectares and numbers of colonies are at an all time low.

Good records of the numbers of colonies and area occupied go back to 1992 and there is less complete data for most years going back to the late 1970s and numbers this year appear to be lower than observed for any year since the overwintering colonies became known to science in 1975. The lowest previous total, 2.19 hectares, was reported in 2004.

This decline continues a trend that started in the late 1990s. In the decade of the 90s the mean area occupied by monarch colonies was close to 9 hectares. The mean for the last 10 years, through the 09 migration, is now below 5 hectares per year and the three lowest monarch overwintering populations were reported in this decade.”

Chip Taylor of Monarch Watch offers explanations for the low numbers:

“Without going into great detail and wishing not to repeat the October report, here is a brief summary of the reasons for the low overwintering numbers.

1.) High temperatures in Texas in March and early April limited production of first generation monarchs. It is these monarchs that recolonize the northern breeding range and fewer monarchs moving north/northeast out of Texas from late April to June impacts the rest of the breeding season.

2.) Conditions were less than ideal for the first generation monarchs as they moved north in May and early June.

3.) Upon arrival in Minnesota monarchs encountered drought conditions that limited reproductive success of first generation in that area.

4.) As the summer progressed, cool and cool, rainy conditions prevailed in many areas, limiting reproduction and slowing development of larvae.

5.) Colder than normal condition prevailed for most of the western two thirds of the northern breeding area from mid June into early September.

In many respects the conditions during the monarch breeding season in 2009 were a repeat of the conditions seen in 2004 that contributed to the previous low overwintering population number of 2.19 hectares.

In spite of the recent cold snap that reached into Mexico, there have been no indications of weather related mortality at the overwintering sites. Let’s hope that normal winter conditions prevail during the next 7-8  weeks. Even if there should be some mortality, our experience with the disaster of 2002, in which an estimated 80% of the population died as the result of a January storm, showed that, if at least 1 hectare of monarchs survives to move north and, IF they encounter normal conditions as they move north through Mexico and in Texas, the population can recover.”

Ok, so the news isn’t great this month but there’s the glimmer of hope that Chip offers that the population can recover if they don’t encounter further setbacks. Let’s hope there aren’t any bad cold snaps in Mexico over the next few weeks.

If there is enough interest, I’d be happy to do my program on Monarchs and their lifecycle again this Spring – just let me know.

Yup, there’s a new identification book out by David Sibley but it’s not a bird book…this time it’s on Trees! As far as I know, this is the first non-bird book that David has written and indeed, I think it will be really useful. Sure, there are pros and cons to the guide, as there with every one out there, but overall I like it.

He starts the book with general terminology for tree identification, has drawings of the different types of leaves, flowers and bark we will encounter, and then gets right into the families and species of trees themselves.

Each section starts with an overview of the family and then the pages that follow go into the details of each species, including range maps, drawings of the leaves (in different seasons), flowers and fruit. He also includes drawings of the bark and trunks and shapes of the trees and includes general characteristics on the species that aid with identification.

I also really like that for each species he indicates if it’s native to the US and if not, where it came from. In many cases,  he shares interesting information such as survival tactics used by specific trees or information on how people have used the tree in years gone by.

One thing that would have been nice with this book is an identification key - the way David intended this book was for you to flip through it looking at the drawings to narrow down the identification. This is ok if you already know the family but trickier if it’s a completely unknown tree.

Definitely a neat tree book to have on-hand though as we try to identify them through the seasons! Oh, and in good naturalist form, he includes a full checklist of the different species at the back of the book so we can check off our sightings

Amazon has a short video clip with David talking about this book and how it can best be used in the field. Click on the link here to see it: The Sibley Guide to Trees.

We got some very sad news the other day about Liam McGranaghan’s wonderful Red-tailed hawk being killed by a cat. And while Banjo is gone now, we wanted to send a note about this story so that it can be learned from. We love cats. I have 4 myself, 3 of which were feral cats that were coming to my bird feeders so I adopted them (or they adopted me, or something like that) and brought them indoors. They’re very happy inside. But, there are many many more out there.

As a community, it’s our responsibility to address this issue. Cats are not wildlife and should not be made to suffer outside, getting diseases and parisites. This example of a Red-tailed Hawk being killed is just one of thousands that plays out every day across our county yet it’s something tha goes virtually unnoticed. We can help address the problem through supporting our local Loudoun County Humane Society, the Loudoun County Animal Care and Control and other local animal rescue organizations as well as through keeping our own cats indoors.

A Tragic and Untimely Death
by Karen Coleman

January 11, 2010:  Banjo died today.  Her death was sudden, tragic, violent and unnatural.  A feral cat killed her.

Banjo was a beautiful, elegant young Red-tailed Hawk belonging to master falconer Liam McGranaghan.  Liam had raised her from a chick, spending countless hours over the last three years feeding her, tending her, and training her to hunt.  Along the way they bonded in that unique way that happens when a human is fortunate enough to develop mutual respect and love with another species and have it returned in kind.

Liam is a good friend, and I encouraged him to bring Banjo over to hunt our woods.  He agreed and gave Banjo a trial flight before Christmas.  Banjo’s flying went well but no food was caught.  Perhaps the heavy snow on the ground was just too strange for her.

We decided to try again on January 11.  Everything was going well, as Banjo flew and began to hunt.  From a tree branch, she tracked a squirrel on the ground, and, as Liam watched, flew towards it.  Unfortunately, also on the ground nearby was a feral cat leaving its den in the woods.  Cat and hawk clashed, and Banjo was killed instantly.  Liam ran to his hawk, but it was too late.

We had no idea there was a feral cat living in the vicinity.  If we had, Banjo would never have flown here.  I don’t blame the cat; it was defending itself.  But, it should not have been here in the first place.  Free-roaming cats, whether feral or domesticated, do not belong in nature.  They are often victims of abandonment, accidental loss, or failure by owners to keep their domesticated pets indoors and neutered or spayed.  They are also voracious predators of birds. 

Don’t misunderstand me, I love cats.  I have a Calico named Emma who is loved by my husband and me and is a big part of our family.  However, I also know that she is a dangerous predator, and given the chance would take any bird she could find.  She stays indoors and is very active, content and healthy.

The day after Banjo was killed, I was driving to Fairfax and listening to the news on the radio.  A report came on about the work of the Wildlife Center of Virginia and the animals they had rescued and treated over the past year.  During 2009, 222 animals were brought to the center after free-roaming cats attacked them.  

According to the center’s website, www.wildlifecenter.org, “birds and other animals that survive an initial cat attack are still in danger; unless treated, infections from the toxic bacteria found in a cat’s mouth kill a significant number of animals.”

Banjo never had a chance.