Wednesday, March 3, 2021 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
xtinction
Monarchs moves closer to extinction
By Olga R. Rodriguez
Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO (AP)
4 The number of western
monarch butterflies winter-
ing along the California coast
has plummeted precipitously
to a record low, putting the
orange-and-black insects
closer to extinction, research-
ers announced last week.
An annual winter count by
the Xerces Society recorded
fewer than 2,000 butterflies,
a massive decline from the
tens of thousands tallied in
recent years and the millions
that clustered in trees from
Northern California9s Marin
County to San Diego County
in the south in the 1980s.
Western monarch but-
terflies head south from
the Pacific Northwest to
California each winter,
returning to the same places
and even the same trees,
where they cluster to keep
warm. The monarchs gener-
ally arrive in California at
the beginning of November
and spread across the country
once warmer weather arrives
in March.
On the eastern side of the
Rocky Mountains, another
monarch population travels
from southern Canada and
the northeastern United States
across thousands of miles to
spend the winter in central
Mexico. Scientists estimate
the monarch population in the
eastern U.S. has fallen about
80 percent since the mid-
1990s, but the drop-off in the
western U.S. has been even
steeper.
The Xerces Society, a non-
profit environmental orga-
nization that focuses on the
conservation of invertebrates,
recorded about 29,000 butter-
flies in its annual survey last
winter. That was not much
different than the tally the
winter before, when an all-
time low of 27,000 monarchs
were counted.
But the count this year is
dismal. At iconic monarch
wintering sites in the city of
Pacific Grove, volunteers
didn9t see a single butter-
fly this winter. Other well-
known locations, such as
Pismo State Beach Monarch
Butterfly Grove
and Natural
Bridges State
Park, only hosted
a few hundred but-
terflies, researchers said.
<These sites normally
host thousands of butterflies,
and their absence this year
was heartbreaking for volun-
teers and visitors flocking to
these locales, hoping to catch
a glimpse of the awe-inspir-
ing clusters of monarch but-
terflies,= said Sarina Jepsen,
director of endangered spe-
cies at the Xerces Society.
Scientists say the butter-
flies are at critically low lev-
els in western states because
of destruction to their milk-
weed habitat along their
migratory route as housing
expands into their territory
and use of pesticides and her-
bicides increases.
Editor 9s note: Sisters
resident Jean Nave and
teacher Susie Werts have led
local efforts to plant milk-
weed for migrating monarch
butterflies.
Researchers also have
noted the effect of climate
change. Along with farming,
climate change is one of the
main drivers of the monarch9s
threatened extinction, dis-
rupting an annual 3,000-mile
(4,828-kilometer) migration
synched to springtime and the
blossoming of wildflowers.
Massive wildfires throughout
the U.S. West last year may
have influenced their breed-
ing and migration, research-
ers said.
A 2017 study by
Washington State University
researchers predicted that
if the monarch popula-
tion dropped below 30,000,
the species would likely
go extinct in the next few
decades if nothing is done to
save them.
Monarch butterflies lack
state and federal legal protec-
tion to keep their habitat from
being destroyed or degraded.
In December, federal officials
declared the monarch butter-
fly <a candidate= for threat-
ened or endangered status but
said no action would be taken
for several years because of
the many other species await-
ing that designation.
The Xerces Society said it
will keep pursuing protection
for the monarch and work
with a wide variety of part-
ners <to implement science-
based conservation actions
urgently needed to help the
iconic and beloved western
monarch butterfly migration.=
People can help the color-
ful insects by planting early-
blooming flowers and milk-
weed to fuel migrating mon-
archs on their paths to other
states, the Xerces Society
said.
Let us show you
how much you can
save this year!
Call 541-588-6245,
for a free quote!
Sisters salutes...
AFSC (Age Friendly
Sisters Country) expresses
a heart-felt thank you to
John Griffith and Rendal
Broomhead for their two-
plus years of dedicated
service to Sisters Country
as founding board mem-
bers and strategic leaders of
AFSC.
We also wish to thank
Sharon Thorkildson for
serving as our first volun-
teer bookkeeper. Through
their combined efforts,
AFSC has become a via-
ble nonprofit committed
to launching grassroots
projects that enhance the
quality of life (AKA liv-
ability) in our community.
This is how the STARS
(free medical transporta-
tion service), and Sisters
Villages (neighborhood
based social/service) Action
Teams got their starts. With
a well-laid organizational
NuggetNews.com
is your online source for
Breaking News
Classifieds | Weather
Road Reports
MAR
3
257 S. Pine St., #101
MAR
5
FRI
OUTLAWS
LACROSSE
MAR
9
TUES
MAR
11
Youth grades 1-8 and high school grades 9-12.
Shortened season. Current COVID guidelines will apply.
For more details and to register: www.SistersRecreation.com
THUR
MAR
541-549-8198
WE DELIVER!
HAPPY HOUR
3 to 6 p.m.
Monday-Friday
175 N. Larch St.
541-549-6114
4
hardtailsoregon.com
Facebook darcymacey
Deschutes Public Library: How to Really Help Injured
and Orphaned Wildlife 6:30 p.m. The Sunriver Nature Center
& Observatory shares common encounters & experiences. Go
to www.deschuteslibrary.org/calendar/.
www.farmersagent.com/jrybka
MAR
243 N. Elm St., Sisters
OPEN
10 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Things to participate in online while staying safely at home.
4
HOUSEPLANTS!
WE’RE BACK!
Calendar
THUR
The place to go
in Sisters for
foundation in place, Ren
and John are stepping back
from board responsibilities.
We are so grateful for their
contributions.
AFSC is happy to wel-
come Peggy Tehan as our
new board treasurer, tak-
ing over the well-organized
books that Sharon helped
John set up. With room at
the table, AFSC welcomes
anyone with enthusiasm
and a desire to contrib-
ute to explore opportuni-
ties by contacting AFSC
at www.agefriendlysisters.
com.
Seven Days a Week
WED
Auto • Home • Life • Business
541-549-2091
1750 W. McKinney Butte Rd. Sisters
11
16
TUES
Paulina Springs Books Virtual Event 6:30 p.m. Abby
Schneiderman, Adam Seifer & Gene Newman share how to get
organized from their new book, “In Case You Get Hit by a Bus.” For
info call 541-549-0866 or go to www.paulinaspringsbooks.com.
Deschutes Public Library: Central Oregon Bioregional
Herbalism 2 p.m. Learn about local plants’ medicinal
properties and ethical harvesting. Go to www.deschuteslibrary.
org/calendar/.
Deschutes Public Library: Wolves in the West 6 p.m. Wolf
biologist Dick Theil details the eradication and return of the wolf
in the West. Go to www.deschuteslibrary.org/calendar/.
Deschutes Public Library: Wildfl owers of Oregon 6 p.m.
Discover resources to aid in wildfl ower identifi cation with
Damian Fagan, former National Park Service ranger and fi led
biologist. Go to www.deschuteslibrary.org/calendar/.
Deschutes Public Library: Pollinator Pathway and
Native Bees of Central Oregon 3 p.m. Hear from local
environmentalists about the Bend Pollinator Pathway launching
this spring and how you can help pollinators. Go to www.
deschuteslibrary.org/calendar/.