Community Corner
Riechel Reports.... Monarch Volunteers Needed
Do YOU butterfly? Why do we need a "monarch calendar" and your help recording monarch numbers?
Article Source: Monarch Watch
Greetings Monarch Watchers!
Monarch Watch is seeking the immediate assistance of hundreds of monarch enthusiasts (citizen scientists) in collecting observations of monarchs in their area during the spring and fall. This project is an attempt to assemble quantitative data on monarch numbers at critical times during the breeding season. The data from these observations will be used to assess their value in predicting trends in the population.
Find out what's happening in Millbraefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
[ This new project was just posted via the Monarch Watch Blog – if you would prefer to read about it there, please visit http://monarchwatch.org/blog ]
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BACKGROUND
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Find out what's happening in Millbraefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Why do we need a “monarch calendar” and your help recording monarch numbers?
The decline in monarch numbers over the last 15 years has inspired numerous attempts to define critical factors that explain the inter-annual variation in monarch numbers. The data sets used for these analyses have had a variety of limitations which have either been ignored or underappreciated by the authors of a number of publications. The truth is that much of the data that is available is too general and does not adequately represent important aspects of the biology that underlies the development of the population each reproductive season.
There are numerous gaps in our knowledge and some of these gaps can be addressed if we can convince a large number of monarch enthusiasts (citizen scientists) to record the number of monarchs they see each day and what the monarchs are doing, along with general information about the physical conditions associated with each observation.
At the start of this project, we won’t ask participants to record behavior or physical conditions (temperatures and wind speed and direction) but a few observations and notes along those lines might be useful in targeting conditions most favorable for monarch activity. The pivotal latitude is 35N (e.g., Oklahoma City). If the observer is located at a latitude less than 35N (i.e., “South”), we need the number of monarchs seen each day during the following two periods: 10 Mar-30 Apr and 1 Aug-25 Sep – 52 days & 56 days = 108 days total. If the observer is located at a latitude greater than 35N (i.e., “North”) the observation periods are 1 Apr-10 Jun and 15 Jul-20 Aug – 71 days & 37 days = 108 days total.
The first period in the south covers the interval during which the overwintering monarchs arrive in Texas and Oklahoma and points to the east. We need to capture a better estimate of the number of monarchs in this region that arrive from Mexico each year. This starting number has not been captured effectively. The second interval in the south captures the arrival of pre-migration monarchs from the north as well as potential local reproduction during this time. In the north, the first interval will capture some of the returning monarchs early in that period but is more likely to chronicle the arrival of first generation monarchs migrating north to the summer breeding grounds. The second period in the north should capture the relative intensity of the reproductive activities of monarchs during the period in which most of the eggs are laid that become the adults that populate the migratory generation later in August and September.
To provide meaningful data, we need to recruit hundreds of volunteers to record what they see.
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INSTRUCTIONS FOR CITIZEN SCIENTISTS
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Here is what we need you, as citizen scientists, to do:
1. Register as a participant in this project by providing your name, location (including latitude and longitude), and email address via the form at http://monarchwatch.org/register
To determine your geographic coordinates, please use any of the following sites (or others) to enter your city, state/province, and zip/postal code and retrieve your latitude and longitude in decimal form (e.g., latitude: 38.95 longitude: -95.27 for Lawrence, KS 66045).
2. Record every monarch seen in your location for specific periods depending on your latitude. To keep these records all one has to do is to list the number of monarchs seen each day in which seeing a monarch was a possibility. If you were outdoors and saw none, record a zero (0). On the other hand, if there was no opportunity to make any observation due to work or vacation, etc., leave that date record blank. There will often be days when monarchs can’t be active due to weather conditions (e.g., low temperatures, extreme overcast, heavy rainfall). These intervals, if long enough, can also impact population growth. A “W” (for weather) should be entered for each of these days.
We have provided some sample files below that you can use to log your observations but exactly how you do it is up to you. Here are some suggestions: spreadsheets (Excel, Numbers, Google Sheets, etc.), printed calendar sheets (or just a calendar), calendar applications on your computer or phone, notebooks, notes or other text files on your computer or phone. Please feel free to use whatever is easiest and most comfortable for you to log your daily observations of monarch numbers.
Please note: The records for each time period should only reflect the numbers of monarchs seen on any specified day within 50 miles of your home location. If you wish to report monarchs seen at a location other than your home location (specifically, at a different latitude) please use another datasheet as this should be submitted separately.
3. Submit your data to us at the end of the observation period via an online form. We will provide a link to the submission form at a later date via the email address you give us when you register. The form will be very simple; all you will need to do is enter your name and location (including coordinates as you do when you register) then you will be presented with the appropriate time period form to enter your data for each day.
We will assemble the calendar records for each period and region then provide summaries online once we have a chance to analyze the data.
Please register for this project and start logging your observations today! Thank you in advance for your assistance – if you have any questions or comments about this project, please contact us at monarch@ku.edu
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SAMPLE FILES (for logging observations)
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To access these files, please visit this article online at http://monarchwatch.org/blog/2017/03/31/new-monarch-watch-citizen-scientist-project/
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About This Monarch Watch List
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Monarch Watch (http://monarchwatch.org) is a nonprofit education, conservation, and research program based at the University of Kansas that focuses on the monarch butterfly, its habitat, and its spectacular fall migration.
We rely on private contributions to support the program and we need your help! Please consider making a tax-deductible donation. Complete details are available at http://monarchwatch.org/donate or you can simply call 785-832-7374 (KU Endowment Association) for more information about giving to Monarch Watch.
If you have any questions about this email or any of our programs, please feel free to contact us anytime.
Thank you for your continued interest and support!
Jim Lovett
Monarch Watch
http://monarchwatch.org
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Robert Riechel
E=Mail: SanBrunoPatch.Robert@Yahoo.com
My Posts: http://patch.com/users/robert-riechel
Photo Credit: San Bruno CA Patch Archives
Source Credit: Monarch Watch
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