Where Have All The Pollinators Gone?

We, at Ion Exchange belong to a discussion group called Iowa Native Plants from the University of Iowa, It is managed by Diana Horton and supported by the Iowa Native Plant Society. There has been quite a conversation going on about seeing or not seeing pollinators this spring. We would like to share a few observations noted from some of the folks on this discussion group with you for the next few weeks. We would love to have some feedback from you on this subject from your part of the world.

This may be a "tad" off topic but has anyone noticed the lack of pollinators this spring so far?? I'm up in the NW corner of the state and have many places I should be seeing bees, flies, etc...but nearly nothing and it disturbs me...it's not normal! I spoke with an area naturalist yesterday and she said she'd observed the very same thing.I've seen one Bumble Bee (while driving down a gravel road) and virtually no flies. We have a third of an acre of dandelions and nothing on them (save the Goldfinches that are dining on those going to seed). Nothing on any of the Wild Plums either.Golden Alexanders are going into bloom and all the Common Violets, the phlox like Wild Sweet William, the Wild Columbine, etc...but I'm seeing nothing interested....Bruce Morrison, S/.E. O'Brien County
http://www.morrisons-studio.com/ http://prairiepainter.blogspot.com/

Butterfly Forecast May 15-31, 2008

The Ion Exchange Inc is very happy to recieve Harlan's permission to print his Butterfly Forecast.
Butterfly Forecast for May 15-May 31, 2008 We are starting to get into a busier and more diverse part of the butterfly season. Butterflies will be present in small numbers, and there will be more variety than we have seen so far. Among the most conspicuous are the swallowtails. The eastern tiger swallowtail, black swallowtail, and giant swallowtail are all found in central Iowa and can be seen now. Three others--the zebra, spicebush, and pipevine swallowtails--are quite rare in Iowa. Theoretically they could be present in this time period but you are unlikely to see them.
Clouded sulfurs and orange sulfurs will be the most common easily seen butterflies. Two small blue butterflies will be common as well but being small they are easily overlooked. The first is the summer azure. (Iowa apparently has both the spring and summer azure, Celastrina ladon and C.
neglecta, although they are difficult to distinguish in the field. The individuals you see during this time period are most likely to be of the summer azure.) The second is the eastern tailed-blue. Iowa has other blue butterflies but they are quite rare in most of the state. There are also some hairstreaks that can be mistaken for blues. However, 99% of all the blues you see will be either a summer azure or an eastern tailed-blue. An easy way to distinguish them in the field is that the azure will fly up into the trees when approached, and the eastern tailed-blue will fly at ground level.
Other butterflies present now include common buckeyes, painted ladies, red admirals, pearly crescents, cabbage whites, monarchs, question marks, eastern commas, bronze coppers, red spotted purples, and hackberry emperors.
If you find a good bed of flowers now is a great time to enjoy and learn about some of the skippers. We have a small patch of dame¹s rocket (unfortunately not a native plant, but it was part of a ³wildflower mix² we bought some time back). Hobomok skippers chase each other around the flowerbed. They have courtship displays that usually involve three or more individuals. It is fun to watch them chase each other and make the little jet fighter pose where one set of wings is horizontal and the other pair is at about a 45 degree angle.
Of the skippers you see in flowerbeds, hobomoks will be the most conspicuous but the slightly smaller Peck¹s skipper may also be present.
Tawney edge skippers can also be seen at this time. You may run across a small skipper butterfly that can only be described as being a brilliant black with some small white spots. You are more likely to see it mudding than nectaring, at least in my experience. That is the common sooty-wing.
There are other skippers that are dark brown or nearly black but none as completely black as this one.
Watch for the small butterflies‹they are every bit as entertaining as the large ones.

Happy butterflying.

Harlan Ratcliff

References:
Schlicht, Dennis, John C. Downey, and Jeffrey C. Nekola. 2007. The Butterflies of Iowa. The University of Iowa Press, Iowa City, IA.
Scott, James A. 1986. The Butterflies of North America. A Natural History and Field Guide. Stanford University Press, Stanford CA.
IA-BTRFLY: The Iowa Butterfly and Dragonfly list serve.
http://www.wisconsinbutterflies.org/ sightings page.
http://www.naba.org/ sightings page.
Ratcliff, Harlan: 2003-2007 Unpublished butterfly survey results.

The Six Principles of Green Living

Living by “green” principles can be extremely satisfying, but how do you do it? Surely, it’s not by purchasing more “green” products, because buying and using more “things” is all part of the problem. This Lifehack article has got a great point, though, that a better guide to Green Living might well be David Allen’s Getting Things Done, since the principles of Green Living are not all that different from the principles used to be more productive.
1. Strive for Simplicity: More stuff means more complexity; more upkeep, more keeping track, more things to do. In global terms, it means more wasted resources.2. Fairness: Much of our consumption-driven market is based on unfairness. If everyone along the chain, from a Bolivian granny making hand-woven grocery bags to the Wal-Mart worker, actually were paid what you’d expect, that hand-woven grocery bag would be out of most people’s price range.3. Community: If you’ve ever had the pleasure of attending a local farmer’s market, you’ve experienced something few of us do these days: an encounter with a part of your community, an actual living and breathing person, who made that which you’re about to buy.4. Sustainability: A system is sustainable when the negative outputs of that system are accommodated and turned into positive outputs. However, most of our global production is not sustainable. 5. Planning: Planning means looking ahead toward a desired outcome. It also means thinking a little bit about the community that isn’t here yet and dealing fairly with them. The decisions we make now will create the conditions our grandchildren and their grandchildren will have to deal with.6. Transparency: Planning, community, fairness, and ultimately sustainability require transparency, but most decisions these days are made behind closed doors. To take Green Living a bit closer to home, I also encourage you to look into the principles of Bau-Biologie. Bau-Biologie is the holistic study of the man-made environment, human health and ecology, and you can use many of their principles to create a healthier indoor environment for yourself and your family.
Sources:
Lifehack.org

Why are Bats Dying?

Just as news of the massive bee die off is fading from the news (although not actually ending), news of mass bat deaths are just starting to hit the headlines. The loss of bats could be an environmental catastrophe, as they are the world's greatest insect eaters -- devouring up to half their weight in insects every day.The epicenter of the bat die-off is New York. Reports started with hikers noticing dead and dying bats littered outside the caves where they hibernate.The loss of bats is now at the point where researchers are expressing fear that an extinction is underway. The ultimate cause is unknown, although the condition has been named White Nose Syndrome, due to the presence of fungus growths on the bats’ noses and faces. The fungus is believed, however, to be only a symptom rather than the underlying problem.Theories for what is causing the bats to die include:
Virus and bacterial infections
Pesticides, either due to the toxins themselves or because they’ve killed off bats’ major food source, mosquitoes and other insectsBat die-off could have a major impact on humanity, including outbreaks of mosquitoes (and their related diseases like West Nile Fever, malaria, and Eastern Equine Encephalitis) and destruction of crops (which could be overtaken by crop-destructive insects).
Sources:
Natural News April 11, 2008

Dr. Mercola's Comments:
Something is terribly wrong here.Three of the world’s greatest pollinators -- the creatures that are actually responsible for spreading pollen so plants can grow -- are slowly disappearing right before your eyes. First it was the bees. Then the birds. Now the bats. What’s next?The current bat die-off is already being called the most serious threat to North American bats since the beginning of recorded history. In New York, up to 90 percent of the bats hibernating in four caves and mines have died since last winter, and more bats are thought to have died at 15 other New York sites, and also in Massachusetts and Vermont.Biologists believe that up to half a million bats could ultimately be lost, which would have a major impact on the upcoming growing season.Bats are Necessary for Crops to ThriveThe common image of bats acting as pests, flying in your hair or trying to suck your blood are, of course, just myths. One of the biggest fears many have about bats -- rabies -- is also completely unfounded, as bat rabies cause just one human death per year in the United States, according to Bat Conservation International. In reality, bats are a great friend to the environment, helping to pollinate wild plants, disperse fruit seeds, and keep insect populations under control.Bats are also used strategically by organic farmers as a natural means for pest control, as one small bat can eat up to 2,000 mosquitoes in one night. So you can imagine how mosquitoes and other bugs will multiply without bats to keep them in check.Other Pollinators are Also DisappearingAs I said earlier, the problem of disappearing bats is magnified because other North American pollinators, namely birds and bees, are also on the decline.According to a report by the National Audubon Society, for instance, the numbers of some species of birds have plummeted by 60 percent to 80 percent. And as of April 2007, 25 percent of all bee colonies in 27 U.S. states had died. The growing absence of these necessary creatures is signaling a silent alarm bell about the state of our ecosystem. Even the U.S. Department of Agriculture is calling it an “impending pollination crisis.”Something is throwing things off balance, and, little by little, nature is dying. Eventually, it will no longer be a gradual occurrence, but rather like when you put a stick into a turning bicycle wheel, everything will abruptly come to a halt, and likely fall.What’s Killing Off the Bees, Birds and Bats?Nobody knows for sure. And my guess is that it is not one thing but rather an accumulation of things such as:
Pesticides and other environmental toxins
Cell phones and information-carrying radio waves
Genetically modified crops In the case of bats, new pesticides that are designed specifically to fight West Nile Virus are also likely culprits. These pesticides kill mosquitoes, and bats need mosquitoes to survive. As a telling sign, bats that have been found dead appeared to have died from starvation, as their fat stores were largely depleted.There is also a sign that something is altering their behavior, as bats have been found flying during the winter and during the day, while they should have been hibernating.Can Life Go on Without the Birds and the Bees (and the Bats)?Not for long, no. One-third of the U.S. food supply is dependent on the pollination from bees alone, and without bats or birds, the food supply as you know it would be long gone.Is there anything you can do?Well, on a local level, yes. I would suggest contacting your town’s city officials to protest spraying the area with pesticides to combat West Nile Virus. Next, if you have a backyard, consider putting up a couple of bat houses, a bird feeder, and a bird bath, then planting some flowers that attract bees, such as:
Basil, rosemary, sage and thyme
Lavender
Geraniums
Sunflowers
Verbena
Zinnias
Bee balm
Cosmos

These are small steps, but no contribution is too small when it comes to our one and only environment.