Productive engagement with agriculture essential to monarch butterfly conservation

Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) decline over the past 25 years has received considerable public and scientific attention, in large part because its decline, and that of its milkweed (Asclepias spp.) host plant, have been linked to genetically modified (GM) crops and associated herbicide use. Here, we use museum and herbaria specimens to extend our knowledge of the dynamics of both monarchs and milkweeds in the United States to more than a century, from 1900 to 2016. We show that both monarchs and milkweeds increased during the early 20th century and that recent declines are actually part of a much longer-term decline in both monarchs and milkweed beginning around 1950. Herbicide-resistant crops, therefore, are clearly not the only culprit and, likely, not even the primary culprit: Not only did monarch and milkweed declines begin decades before GM crops were introduced, but other variables, particularly a decline in the number of farms, predict common milkweed trends more strongly over the period studied here.

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Productive engagement and ageing in productivist welfare regimes: questing for an age-friendly city in Hong Kong

Ageing and Society ◽

10.1017/s0144686x21000167 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-23

Author(s):

Zhuoyi Wen ◽

Ka Ho Mok ◽

Padmore Adusei Amoah

Keyword(s):

Hong Kong ◽

Later Life ◽

Active Ageing ◽

Welfare Regimes ◽

Social Survey ◽

Voluntary Engagement ◽

Social Provisions ◽

The City ◽

Cross National ◽

Productive Engagement

Abstract The population aged 65 years and above in Hong Kong is projected to rise from 15 per cent in 2014 to 38.4 per cent in 2069. Therefore, the quest for creating age-friendly conditions and the promotion of active ageing has become a priority for the Hong Kong Government and stakeholders in the city. Using a cross-national comparative framework for productive engagement in later life, this article examines the predictors of productive engagement (perceived voluntary engagement) in two districts (the Islands and Tsuen Wan) of Hong Kong – a typical productivist welfare regime in Asia. Data were collected through a social survey to ascertain the perception of an age-friendly city and active ageing in 2016 and 2018 from 1,638 persons aged 60 years and older. The results indicate some differences in the perception of the key determinants in both districts, but the factors associated with productive engagement were consistent, namely social atmosphere, social provisions and the built environment. The findings are discussed within the broader discourse on social gerontology, age-friendly cities and productivist welfare regimes.

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High Survivorship of First-Generation Monarch Butterfly Eggs to Third Instar Associated with a Diverse Arthropod Community

Insects ◽

10.3390/insects12060567 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (6) ◽

pp. 567

Author(s):

Misty Stevenson ◽

Kalynn L. Hudman ◽

Alyx Scott ◽

Kelsey Contreras ◽

Jeffrey G. Kopachena

Keyword(s):

Host Plants ◽

First Generation ◽

Danaus Plexippus ◽

Monarch Butterfly ◽

Conservation Strategies ◽

North Texas ◽

Ecological Processes ◽

Area Of Occupancy ◽

Predator Abundance ◽

A Site

Based on surveys of winter roost sites, the eastern migratory population of the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) in North America appears to have declined in the last 20 years and this has prompted the implementation of numerous conservation strategies. However, there is little information on the survivorship of first-generation monarchs in the core area of occupancy in Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana where overwinter population recovery begins. The purpose of this study was to determine the survivorship of first-generation eggs to third instars at a site in north Texas and to evaluate host plant arthropods for their effect on survivorship. Survivorship to third instar averaged 13.4% and varied from 11.7% to 15.6% over three years. The host plants harbored 77 arthropod taxa, including 27 predatory taxa. Despite their abundance, neither predator abundance nor predator richness predicted monarch survival. However, host plants upon which monarchs survived often harbored higher numbers of non-predatory arthropod taxa and more individuals of non-predatory taxa. These results suggest that ecological processes may have buffered the effects of predators and improved monarch survival in our study. The creation of diverse functional arthropod communities should be considered for effective monarch conservation, particularly in southern latitudes.

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