scholarly journals Habitat Type Influences Danaus plexippus (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) Oviposition and Egg Survival on Asclepias syriaca (Gentianales: Apocynaceae)

2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 675-684 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Myers ◽  
Christie A Bahlai ◽  
Douglas A Landis
Keyword(s):  
Oviposition Preference ◽  
Habitat Type ◽  
Danaus Plexippus ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Breeding Habitat ◽  
North American Population ◽  
Asclepias Syriaca ◽  
Egg Predation ◽  
Row Crops ◽  
Predation Rates

AbstractAs agricultural practices intensify, species once common in agricultural landscapes are declining in abundance. One such species is the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus L.), whose eastern North American population has decreased approximately 80% during the past 20 yr. One hypothesis explaining the monarch’s decline is reduced breeding habitat via loss of common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca L.) from agricultural landscapes in the north central United States due to the adoption of herbicide-tolerant row crops. Current efforts to enhance monarch breeding habitat primarily involve restoring milkweed in perennial grasslands. However, prior surveys found fewer monarch eggs on common milkweed in grassland versus crop habitats, indicating potential preference for oviposition in row crop habitats, or alternatively, greater egg loss to predation in grasslands. We tested these alternative mechanisms by measuring oviposition and egg predation on potted A. syriaca host plants. Our study revealed that habitat context influences both monarch oviposition preference and egg predation rates and that these patterns vary by year. We found higher monarch egg predation rates during the first 24 h after exposure and that much of the predation occurs at night. Overall, we documented up to 90% egg mortality over 72 h in perennial grasslands, while predation rates in corn were lower (10–30% mortality) and more consistent between years. These findings demonstrate that weekly monarch egg surveys are too infrequent to distinguish oviposition habitat preferences from losses due to egg predation and suggest that monarch restoration efforts need to provide both attractive and safe habitats for monarch reproduction.

scholarly journals Employing Very High Frequency (VHF) Radio Telemetry to Recreate Monarch Butterfly Flight Paths

2020 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 312-323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelsey E Fisher ◽  
James S Adelman ◽  
Steven P Bradbury
Keyword(s):  
High Frequency ◽  
Radio Telemetry ◽  
Danaus Plexippus ◽  
Movement Patterns ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Breeding Habitat ◽  
Stationary Points ◽  
Very High Frequency ◽  
Monarch Butterflies ◽  
Very High

Abstract The overwintering population of eastern North American monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) has declined significantly. Loss of milkweed (Asclepias sp.), the monarch’s obligate host plant in the Midwest United States, is considered to be a major cause of the decline. Restoring breeding habitat is an actionable step towards population recovery. Monarch butterflies are highly vagile; therefore, the spatial arrangement of milkweed in the landscape influences movement patterns, habitat utilization, and reproductive output. Empirical studies of female movement patterns within and between habitat patches in representative agricultural landscapes support recommendations for habitat restoration. To track monarch movement at distances beyond human visual range, we employed very high frequency radio telemetry with handheld antennae to collect movement bearings on a biologically relevant time scale. Attachment of 220–300 mg transmitters did not significantly affect behavior and flight capability. Thirteen radio-tagged monarchs were released in a restored prairie, and locations were estimated every minute for up to 39 min by simultaneous triangulation from four operators. Monarchs that left the prairie were tracked and relocated at distances up to 250 m. Assuming straight flights between locations, the majority of steps within the prairie were below 50 m. Steps associated with exiting the prairie exceeded 50 m with high directionality. Because butterflies do not fly in straight lines between stationary points, we also illustrate how occurrence models can use location data obtained through radio telemetry to estimate movement within a prairie and over multiple land cover types.

scholarly journals Tracking multi-generational colonization of the breeding grounds by monarch butterflies in eastern North America

2013 ◽  
Vol 280 (1768) ◽  
pp. 20131087 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. T. Tyler Flockhart ◽  
Leonard I. Wassenaar ◽  
Tara G. Martin ◽  
Keith A. Hobson ◽  
Michael B. Wunder ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Danaus Plexippus ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
Breeding Habitat ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
Distribution Models ◽  
Monarch Butterflies ◽  
Breeding Distribution ◽  
Breeding Grounds ◽  
Isotope Measurements

Insect migration may involve movements over multiple breeding generations at continental scales, resulting in formidable challenges to their conservation and management. Using distribution models generated from citizen scientist occurrence data and stable-carbon and -hydrogen isotope measurements, we tracked multi-generational colonization of the breeding grounds of monarch butterflies ( Danaus plexippus ) in eastern North America. We found that monarch breeding occurrence was best modelled with geographical and climatic variables resulting in an annual breeding distribution of greater than 12 million km 2 that encompassed 99% occurrence probability. Combining occurrence models with stable isotope measurements to estimate natal origin, we show that butterflies which overwintered in Mexico came from a wide breeding distribution, including southern portions of the range. There was a clear northward progression of monarchs over successive generations from May until August when reproductive butterflies began to change direction and moved south. Fifth-generation individuals breeding in Texas in the late summer/autumn tended to originate from northern breeding areas rather than regions further south. Although the Midwest was the most productive area during the breeding season, monarchs that re-colonized the Midwest were produced largely in Texas, suggesting that conserving breeding habitat in the Midwest alone is insufficient to ensure long-term persistence of the monarch butterfly population in eastern North America.

Low prevalence of the parasite Ophryocystis elektroscirrha at the range edge of the eastern North American monarch (Danaus plexippus) butterfly population

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felipe Dargent ◽  
Sydney M Gilmour ◽  
Emma A Brown ◽  
Rees Kassen ◽  
Heather M Kharouba
Keyword(s):  
North American ◽  
Population Distribution ◽  
Danaus Plexippus ◽  
Range Limits ◽  
North American Population ◽  
Ophryocystis Elektroscirrha ◽  
Range Edge ◽  
Relative Contribution ◽  
Northern Edge ◽  
Butterfly Population

Every year monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus Linnaeus, 1758) from the eastern North American population migrate from Mexico to Southern Canada in the spring. This northward migration has been shown to reduce monarch infection with the host-specific parasite Ophryocystis elektroscirrha (OE) (McLaughlin and Myers, 1970); yet, the prevalence of OE at their range limits, and the mechanism(s) responsible, is unknown. We assessed OE infection levels of monarchs at the northern edge of the eastern population distribution around Ottawa, Canada, and found extremely low levels of infection (~1% with upper confidence intervals close to 3%). Low OE infection levels are likely due to low densities of monarchs in this region and/or migratory escape effects, where migrating individuals leave behind areas with high density of conspecifics and high potential for parasite accumulation and transmission. Future work should aim to disentangle the relative contribution of these two mechanisms for governing the decrease in parasitism at the range limits of migratory populations.

scholarly journals Gefährlich und nützlich zugleich: Strategien zum Management der invasiven Robinie

2018 ◽  
Vol 169 (2) ◽  
pp. 77-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michaela Vítková ◽  
Marco Conedera ◽  
Jiří Sádlo ◽  
Jan Pergl ◽  
Petr Pyšek
Keyword(s):  
Time Management ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Agricultural Landscape ◽  
Black Locust ◽  
Robinia Pseudoacacia ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Habitat Type ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Intensively Managed

Dangerous and useful at the same time: management strategies for the invasive black locust The North American black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) is considered controversial as many other introduced tree species because of its both positive and negative properties. Based on a literature review and own data we analyze the occurrence of black locust in Czechia and Switzerland and present the management approaches in place. In both countries, black locust is on the blacklist of invasive introduced species. It can grow in a wide range of habitats from urban and agricultural landscape to dry grassland and forest. Meanwhile, the species became in many places part of the environment and human culture, so that neither unrestricted cultivation nor large-scale eradication is feasible. We suggest a context-dependent management which respects the different needs and takes into account the local environmental conditions, land-use, habitat type, risk of spread as well as economic, cultural and biodiversity aspects. To this purpose we propose three management strategies: 1) control respectively gradual suppression of black locust in forests where the species is not welcome, 2) its eradication in sensitive ecosystems as dry grasslands or clear and dry forests and 3) its tolerance in intensively managed agricultural landscapes and in urban environment.

scholarly journals Reducing Native Ant Abundance Decreases Predation Rates in Midwestern Grasslands

2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (6) ◽  
pp. 1360-1368
Author(s):  
B D Wills ◽  
T N Kim ◽  
A F Fox ◽  
C Gratton ◽  
D A Landis
Keyword(s):  
Significant Role ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Common Garden ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Natural Prey ◽  
Significant Negative Impact ◽  
Predator Abundance ◽  
Abundance And Diversity ◽  
Lasius Neoniger ◽  
Predation Rates

Abstract Diverse and robust predator communities are important for effective prey suppression in natural and managed communities. Ants are ubiquitous components of terrestrial systems but their contributions to natural prey suppression is relatively understudied in temperate regions. Growing evidence suggests that ants can play a significant role in the removal of insect prey within grasslands, but their impact is difficult to separate from that of nonant predators. To test how ants may contribute to prey suppression in grasslands, we used poison baits (with physical exclosures) to selectively reduce the ant population in common garden settings, then tracked ant and nonant ground predator abundance and diversity, and removal of sentinel egg prey for 7 wk. We found that poison baits reduced ant abundance without a significant negative impact on abundance of nonant ground predators, and that a reduction in ant abundance decreased the proportion of sentinel prey eggs removed. Even a modest decrease (~20%) in abundance of several ant species, including the numerically dominant Lasius neoniger Emery (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), significantly reduced sentinel prey removal rates. Our results suggest that ants disproportionately contribute to ground-based predation of arthropod prey in grasslands. Changes in the amount of grasslands on the landscape and its management may have important implications for ant prevalence and natural prey suppression services in agricultural landscapes.

scholarly journals Population Growth and Insecticide Residues of Honey Bees in Tropical Agricultural Landscapes

Diversity ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Damayanti Buchori ◽  
Akhmad Rizali ◽  
Windra Priawandiputra ◽  
Dewi Sartiami ◽  
Midzon Johannis
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Population Growth ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Agricultural Intensification ◽  
Stingless Bees ◽  
Field Experiments ◽  
Habitat Type ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Stingless Bee ◽  
Home Garden

Global decline of pollinators, especially bees, has been documented in many countries. Several causes such as land-use change and agricultural intensification are reported to be the main drivers of the decline. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of land use on honey bee and stingless bee populations. Research was conducted in Bogor and Malang to compare between two different geographical areas. Managed bees such as honey bees (Apis cerana and A. mellifera) and stingless bees (Tetragonula laeviceps) were investigated to examine the effect of agricultural intensification. Field experiments were conducted by placing beehives in selected habitats (i.e., beekeeper gardens, forests areas, and agriculture areas). Population growth and neonicotinoid residue analysis of bees in different hive locations were measured to study the effect of habitat type. Population growth of bees represents the forager abundance and colony weight. Based on the analysis, we found that habitat type affected forager abundance and colony weight of honey bees (p < 0.05), although the patterns were different between species, region, as well as season. Forests could support the stingless bee colony better than agriculture and home garden habitats. Insecticide (neonicotinoid) was barely recorded in both honey bees and stingless bees.

Habitat use by Harlequin Ducks breeding in Hebron Fiord, Labrador

1998 ◽  
Vol 76 (5) ◽  
pp. 897-901 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael S Rodway
Keyword(s):  
Vegetation Cover ◽  
Benthic Invertebrate ◽  
Breeding Habitat ◽  
Habitat Characteristics ◽  
Habitat Requirements ◽  
North American Population ◽  
American Population ◽  
Invertebrate Fauna ◽  
Chironomid Larvae ◽  
Harlequin Ducks

Understanding of breeding habitat requirements is vital to recovery plans for the endangered eastern North American population of Harlequin Ducks (Histrionicus histrionicus). I compared habitat characteristics and benthic invertebrate fauna between streams in Hebron Fiord, Labrador, used and unused by Harlequin Ducks in 1996. Used streams were narrower, had higher pH and temperature, a larger substrate, steeper shorelines, and greater vegetation cover on islands and shorelines than unused streams. Greater numbers of invertebrates were recovered from kick samples, simuliid larvae and plecopteran nymphs were more frequent, and chironomid larvae and emphemeropteran nymphs were less frequent in used than in unused streams. Results from this study will help focus future survey and conservation efforts.

THE BIOLOGY OF CANADIAN WEEDS: 19. Asclepias syriaca L.

1976 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 579-589 ◽  
Author(s):  
PRASANTA C. BHOWMIK ◽  
JOHN D. BANDEEN
Keyword(s):  
River Basins ◽  
Biological Data ◽  
Asclepias Syriaca ◽  
Eastern Canada ◽  
Forage Crops ◽  
Great Abundance ◽  
Row Crops ◽  
Southern Ontario ◽  
Common Milkweed Asclepias Syriaca

This summary of biological data is for common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca L.), as a weed in Canada, particularly in eastern Canada. Weedy populations of this perennial occur in great abundance in southern Ontario and Quebec. It belongs to association of plants of roadsides, waste lands and river basins. Recently, this weed has spread into cultivated lands, especially cereals, row crops and forage crops.

scholarly journals No broad decline of breeding monarch butterflies in North America: implications for conservation efforts

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew K Davis ◽  
Michael S Crossley ◽  
Matthew K Moran ◽  
Jeffrey Glassberg ◽  
William E Snyder
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Habitat Restoration ◽  
Danaus Plexippus ◽  
Geographic Range ◽  
Breeding Habitat ◽  
Flagship Species ◽  
Monarch Butterflies ◽  
Breeding Populations ◽  
First Time

Many insects are in clear decline, with monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) drawing particular attention as a flagship species. Falling numbers of overwintering monarchs are well documented, but there has been debate regarding population trends of summer breeding populations. Here, we compile a series of long-term monarch monitoring datasets, some which are analyzed here for the first time, that reveal highly variable responses across the migratory geographic range, but no broad net decline in numbers of breeding monarchs. We also did not find evidence that sampling biased towards natural sites was masking declines at disturbed sites. Overall, our results suggest a robust resiliency in summer populations that thus far has allowed recovery from losses during the winter. Thus, monarchs may not require as much breeding habitat restoration as once thought, and focus should be on conserving the fall and spring migration.

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