March 2002 Issue:
In This Edition:
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Election of Officers/Directors |
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Coming Events |
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Monarchs Suffer |
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Recipe |
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Poets Wanted |
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Mexico |
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Members |
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… and more |
NABA's MISSION STATEMENT: ELECTION OF OFFICERS/DIRECTORS: The Nominating Committee is pleased to present the following 2002-2003 slate of officers and directors for the St. Louis NABA chapter. The slate will be will be voted upon at the Sunday, April 7th meeting at Tom Krauska's house (see Calendar). Officers and directors will serve a one year term. Thank you to these very devoted members who have agreed to accept the nomination and serve our chapter: President Yvonne Homeyer Respectfully submitted, *********************************************************** COMING EVENTS: March 6 and 13: "Butterfly Gardening" Class offered by Dennis Bozzay. These two-hour classes, including slide presentation, will be offered on two Wednesday evenings in March through the adult education programs of UMSL and Jefferson College in Hillsboro. Contact the schools directly for dates and registration. Sunday, March 17, 9:00 a.m., Gardening Experience at Jim Ziebol Butterfly Garden, Busch Conservation Area. Let your hands lift your spirit in a truly down-to-earth way. The Jim Ziebol Butterfly Garden needs your helping hand to jump start the beds for a new season of wildflowers and butterflies. We need the time and talents of our NABA members to help make this year's garden better than ever. Questions? Please call Dennis Bozzay. After the gardening is finished, participants may want to stay to look at birds, spring wildflowers and - if we're lucky - some early butterflies. Sunday, April 7, 2:00 p.m., Annual Meeting & Election of Officers and Board Members, at Tom Terrific (Krauska's) house. Tom will also present a program "Ten Commandments of Butterfly Gardening." Thursdays, April 11 & 18, NABA Workshop "Local Butterflies: Identification And Natural History" from 6:30 - 8:30p.m. at St. Louis Community College at Meramec (also included in Master Naturalist Certificate Program). To register, call 314-984-7777. Tuesday, April 16, 8:00 a.m., Gardening Experience at Jim Ziebol Butterfly Garden, Busch Conservation Area (helping hands needed). Questions? Please call Dennis Bozzay. Saturday, April 27, 9:45 a.m., Butterfly Walk, Busch Conservation Area in St. Charles County. Directions: Take Hwy. 40 west across the Missouri River bridge into St. Charles County; exit at Hwy. 94. Turn left (south) on Hwy. 94 and go 1.1 miles to County Hwy. D. At Hwy. D (stop light), turn right (west). Entrance to Busch is about 2 miles down the road, on your right. Sunday, May 19, 1:00 p.m., Butterfly Walk at Tyson Research Center, co-sponsored by Friends of Tyson. Meet for lunch at noon. Directions: From the junction of I-44 and I-270, go west on I-44 about 7 miles to the AntireRoad/Beaumont exit. The entrance gate is at the end of the exit ramp (stop sign) and on your right. Sunday, May 26, 8:00 a.m., Gardening Experience at Jim Ziebol Butterfly Garden, Busch Conservation Area (helping hands needed). Questions? Please call Dennis Bozzay. Sunday, July 7, 9:45 a.m., 4th of July Butterfly Count, Busch Conservation Area. A Gardening Experience (helping hands needed) will be held at 8:00 a.m. at the Jim Ziebol Butterfly Garden before the count starting at 9:45 a.m. Sunday, July 14, 4th of July Count near Alma, Illinois, sponsored by Richard & Susan Day. This Count is brand new. Sunday, Aug. 18, 8:00 a.m., Gardening Experience at Jim Ziebol Butterfly Garden, Busch Conservation Area (helping hands needed). Questions? Please call Dennis Bozzay. Saturday, Aug. 24 - 4th of July Butterfly Count, Horseshoe Lake State Park, Illinois. *********************************************************** MONARCHS SUFFER: MONARCHS SUFFER DRASTIC NUMBER OF DEATHS by Yvonne Homeyer For the second year in a row, Monarchs overwintering in Mexico have died by the millions. In January, an estimated 250 million Monarchs froze to death, approximately 80% of the populations at two of the reserves. The World Wildlife Fund believes that extensive illegal logging in the pine forests is to blame. Logging has opened up the forest canopy, exposing Monarchs to cold temperatures and bad weather. An intact forest serves as a blanket that keeps the cold, rain and snow out. The freezing temperatures that killed the Monarchs were severe but not record-breaking, indicating that Monarchs are no longer able to survive the same conditions as in the past. Since there is no way to replace the forest quickly, prospects for the Monarchs are grim. These experiences teach us that the gradual destruction of the environment can result in sudden, catastrophic disasters. Species that appear to be doing well may actually be living on the brink of some unforeseen catastrophe that can be directly linked to human activities such as logging, water pollution, air pollution, overuse of chemicals, and habitat destruction. The NABA database offers the opportunity for each of us to record how many Monarchs we see this year. NABA can then keep track of how many Monarchs are returning, and how they are faring on their breeding territories. Go to www.naba.org, click on the database title "Butterflies I Have Seen", and log on. The database is open to anyone who registers. The directions are easy to follow. *********************************************************** RECIPE: RECIPE FOR EARLY SPRING BUTTERFLIES by Belle Warden You will need: Set in a sunny open place and watch for Red Admirals, Question Marks, Mourning Cloaks and other fruit loving butterflies. If they are in the area, they will come. Should last at least a week if kept moist with apple water. *********************************************************** POETS WANTED: Do butterflies make you poetic? If so, NABA is encouraging our poet members to send in their poems for publication in the quarterly Butterfly Gardener magazine. You can email your poetry to Rita Venable, editor, at: venable@naba.org or mail to 601 Franklin Road, Franklin, TN 37069. *********************************************************** MEXICO: In early February I went to the Pacific slope of Mexico to go bird watching, but I was curious about possible butterflies. I stayed at a charming little place called Villa Chuparosa ("Hummingbird") in the village of La Penita de Jaltemba, 45 minutes north of Puerto Vallarta. La Chuparosa is a newly renovated private compound consisting of three houses and catering to nature lovers. The stay was very comfortable, and the hosts are most knowlegible and anxious to have visitors. The bird watching was spectacular (about 240 species, 20 endemics), but the best time for butterflies is around November (the area list has about 300 species). Even in the off-season I saw Red-bordered Pixie, Blomfeld's Beauty, Queen, Mourning Cloak, Zebra Longwing, Great Southern White and more. Call me, Scott Marshall, 961-0977 for details. Or e-mail Libby and Jerry Einem at libbyeinem@hotmail.com and view the property at http://www.vrbo.com/vrbo/9796.htm. *********************************************************** MEMBERS: MEMBER SPOT LIGHT One of our informal objectives is to get to know each other while we get to know the butterflies. In an effort to give our members a little more personal information, this newsletter's spot light is shining on MARK PETERS. Mark lives in Imperial, MO where he has nurtured his own private prairie. He was our host for a NABA walk last July which produced Juniper Hairstreak and other good finds. Mark has invited NABA back for a visit to his prairie in June (date to be announced). Mark has been a long-time nature lover and thinks his interest in butterflies was just a natural extension of his love for the out-of-doors. He is a keen observer and has kept journals of bird and butterfly behavior. Mark is an experienced birdwatcher who served as hawk watch coordinator for Missouri for 10 years and was regional editor of the hawk watch journal. If there were more hours in the day, he would pursue his interests in water-color painting and chess. Say "hi" to Mark when you see him this spring! NEW MEMBER Our newest member is JOHN KAREL. Glad to have you with us, John. *********************************************************** AND MORE... VISIT OUR WEB SITE at www.naba.org/chapters/nabasl/stlouis.htm. Dave Larson is our Webmaster. YOUR OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS: If you have questions or suggestions, e-mail Yvonne Homeyer NEWSLETTER ITEMS WANTED MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION If you or someone you know would like to become a member of the St. Louis Chapter of NABA, please fill out this application: Name _____________________________________________ *********************************************************** *********************************************************** |
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