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Why
the red flags?
The red flags are marking tiny milkweed plants. I needed
to know where milkweed was growing because this field is my new
MLMP study site.
The
first step in the Monarch Larva Monitoring
Project is to find a study site. Once each week, volunteers
visit their study sites and count the eggs and larvae using the
milkweed. (You need at least 30 plants for a study site. I expected
to find fewer than 50 milkweed plants but, when I looked closely,
I found more than 200!)
Why
is this study important?
The data volunteers collect are important in advancing
our understanding of the factors that drive monarch populations,
says Dr. Oberhauser. This is the only study that
monitors the monarch population during the breeding season across
North America. The results show scientists how abundant monarchs
are in different geographic regions, and how successfully they are
reproducing. Scientists need to know what factors cause the monarch
population to fluctuate (rise and fall) the way it does. Look at
the graph of winter
population size in Mexico to see how the size of the population
can change from year to year.
Volunteers
are
needed!
You
can help scientists study monarch populations by establishing your
own study site.
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The
red flags mark the milkweed plants growing in my MLMP study site
I
have taken the flags down now that I know where milkweed is growing.
I didn't want the flags to scare the monarchs away, or interfere
with the butterflies' behavior in any way!
Now
I am using the flags to mark the perimeter of my study site so I
know where to find the milkweed each week.
Elizabeth
Howard
Journey North |
