Monarch butterflies disappearing from Midwest gardens (A)
WASHINGTON — The monarch butterfly is poisonous to its enemies. Animals and birds that try to eat the
insect will become very sick. Now, people are worried that the butterfly is being poisoned.
The number of monarch butterflies across the United States is shrinking. In 2013, the number of monarchs was
one-tenth of what it usually is.
A group of people have joined together to protect the monarchs. These people are called environmentalists.
They care deeply about the plants and animals on the Earth.
They want the butterfly to be put on the endangered species list. Animals on this list receive protection from the
government. There are laws that protect endangered species.
Some Good Weeds Are Being Killed
The environmentalists wrote a letter to the Fish and Wildlife Service. It is a government group. Fish and
Wildlife helps protect endangered species. The environmentalists asked them to protect the butterflies.
The environmentalists believe that a chemical called Roundup is part of the reason that the butterflies are dying
so fast. Roundup is a chemical spray that farmers put on crops. It is called a herbicide. Herbicides kill weeds so
that "good" crops can grow stronger.
However, Roundup also kills milkweed. Milkweed grows near the crops. Monarch caterpillars eat milkweed.
When the milkweed dies, the monarch caterpillars starve.
Roundup is made by Monsanto Company. Charla Lord works at Monsanto. She does not believe Monsanto
products kill butterflies.
She said there are other factors harming the butterflies. Weather like snow and frost might hurt them, Lord said.
Logging could also be to blame.
Too Many Butterflies Have Disappeared
The environmentalists agreed that butterflies might be dying for other reasons.
Weather can hurt the butterflies. If the weather is too hot or if there is not enough water, butterflies may die.
Humans threaten butterflies, too. When people cut down trees to build houses and spread out, away from cities,
they can damage the land where butterflies live.
Millions of butterflies are dying every year. In the mid-1990s, there were about 1 billion butterflies in the
United States. In 2013, there were only 35 million.
Environmentalists hope the population increases soon.
They hope that the Fish and Wildlife Service adds the monarch butterfly to the endangered species list. Right
now, the butterfly is not protected.
Monarch butterflies disappearing from Midwest gardens (B)
WASHINGTON - The colorful monarch butterfly is in danger. Environmentalists believe an enemy other than
the changing climate is hurting the insect.
Over the last year, the population of monarch butterflies across the United States fell to 90 percent below its 20year average.
To halt the population loss, a number of groups made a request that the Fish and Wildlife Service grant the
butterfly endangered species protection. Environmentalists believe that this formal classification will help bring
more attention to the shrinking number of monarchs throughout the country.
The petition requests that the Fish and Wildlife Service aggressively protect the species and its different habitats
across the county.
The environmental groups believe the culprit responsible for the butterfly's decline is Monsanto Company.
Monarchs Need Milkweed To Survive
Monsanto is an agricultural biotechnology company. They produce genetically engineered plants and chemicals.
Monsanto's specialized products can have a huge impact on the lifestyle of other plants and animals.
Monsanto produces a chemical spray for plants called Roundup. The spray is a "potent killer of milkweed, the
monarch caterpillar's only food," according to a statement from the Center for Biological Diversity, the Center
for Food Safety and the Xerces Society.
According to the statement, most monarchs are born in the Midwest. The use of chemicals like Roundup on
genetically modified plants is also common in that region. The surge of Roundup and Roundup Ready crops - or
crops that are not affected by chemical sprays - comes at the expense of the milkweed plants. Ultimately, it
harms the monarch caterpillars, who starve without healthy milkweed to eat.
A Stable Climate Is Important
Monsanto does not believe that its chemicals are behind the declining population. Charla Lord, a Monsanto
spokeswoman, said there are other reasons to explain the population loss.
"Scientists think a number of inter-related factors are contributing to the decline and year-to-year variation of
monarch butterfly populations," she said.
Those factors include weather events, like snow and frost, logging in Mexico, and simply the way that humans
use land. She said Monsanto would help restore monarch habitats, but did not offer specific ideas.
The groups who filed the petition acknowledge that Monsanto is not the only factor behind the monarch's
decline. The fragile butterfly is also affected by weather and construction.
Heatwaves and droughts can harm the fragile butterfly, who needs water and stable climates. Also, as more
people move from cities to rural areas, new construction can damage butterfly habitats. This process is called
urban sprawl.
Help Is Needed Now!
The butterfly population in 2013, they say, was about 35 million. In the mid-1990s, there were about 1 billion
monarchs. Scientists like Tierra Curry from the Center for Biological Diversity, are hoping that good weather
this year may boost numbers again.
"We're at risk of losing a symbolic backyard beauty that has been part of the childhood of every generation,"
she said.
The petitioners feel that something must be done — fast.
By filing a petition with Fish and Wildlife, they took the first step in earning federal protection for the butterfly.
The agency has 90 days to respond to the request, although they may take up to nine months to fully come to
decision.
Monarch butterflies disappearing from Midwest gardens (C)
WASHINGTON — A coalition of environmental and food-safety groups is asking the Fish and Wildlife
Service to grant endangered species protection to the monarch butterfly, whose U.S. population, the groups say,
last year fell to 90 percent below its 20-year average.
In a petition asking for the designation, which would allow the federal government to more aggressively protect
the butterfly and its habitat, the petitioners blamed Monsanto Company’s Roundup herbicide and Roundup
Ready crops for much of the decline.
“The vast majority of genetically engineered crops are made to be resistant to Monsanto’s Roundup
herbicide, a uniquely potent killer of milkweed, the monarch caterpillar’s only food,” the Center for Biological
Diversity, the Center for Food Safety and the Xerces Society said in a joint statement, also signed by monarch
scientist Lincoln Brower of Virginia’s Sweet Briar College.
The statement said that the “butterfly’s dramatic decline is being driven by the widespread planting of
genetically engineered crops in the Midwest where most monarchs are born."
It added, “The dramatic surge in Roundup use with Roundup Ready crops has virtually wiped out milkweed
plants in Midwestern corn and soybean fields."
In an emailed response, Monsanto spokeswoman Charla Lord said:
“Scientists think a number of inter-related factors are contributing to the decline and year-to-year variation of
monarch butterfly populations. While weather events (snowfall and frost) at mountaintop overwintering sites
and logging in Mexico continue to be factors, experts are also focusing on agricultural practices and land use
changes that have reduced milkweeds along the migration path in central regions of North America.”
She said Monsanto would help “restore habitat that supports the monarch migration.”
The environmental and food-safety groups say the butterfly’s population has fallen from a high of 1 billion in
the mid-1990s to about 35 million last year, and that number is only about a tenth of the 20-year average. The
monarch is also threatened by climate change, drought and heat waves, urban sprawl and logging on their
wintering grounds in Mexico, the petitioners said.
Tierra Curry, a senior scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity, said good weather this year may
boost numbers when the group Monarch Watch does its winter survey, but “we’re at risk of losing a symbolic
backyard beauty that has been part of the childhood of every generation.”
Gavin Shire, a spokesman for the Fish and Wildlife Service, said his agency was required by federal regulations
to respond to the petition “to the extent practicable” within 90 days. The agency could decide to extend the
review by nine months more before deciding on the request. The butterfly currently has no special protection
designation from Fish and Wildlife.
The Missouri Department of Conservation has been monitoring the monarch’s decline. The
organization’s Tim Smith predicted on the agency’s website in April that “the sight of the beautiful orange and
black monarch butterfly in Missouri is likely to be less common this year.”
Smith cited a report that monarchs occupied only 1.65 acres of Mexican forest last winter, the third
straight year of steep declines in its overwintering areas. The largest area recorded was 45 acres in 1996, Smith
wrote.
“A number of factors have contributed to the decline of the monarch population in recent years,” Smith
wrote on the MDC website. “Unusually hot weather in the spring of 2012, unusually cold weather last spring,
and the loss of habitat throughout the Great Plains have combined to create hardships for the insects.” He also
cited “weed-free farming techniques” as a contributing cause for the decline.
The Center for Biological Security is a nonprofit conservation organization focused on endangered
species and protecting the wild. The Center for Food Safety, also a nonprofit, advocates sustainable alternatives
to food production. The nonprofit Xerces Society advocates for the conservation of invertebrates and their
habitat.