Explore the silver lining of butterflies in limbo.
Monarchs among the most recognizable and best loved butterflies in North America. But you may have noticed fewer of them traveling through your garden over the last couple of years.
It’s true that monarch numbers have declined recently, and that decline is more extreme in some places than others—but, luckily, it’s not all bad news.
Researchers split monarchs into two groups at the Rockies: eastern and western. They’re not distinct species, but their migration paths and overwintering habitats differ. And one group may be more robust and healthy than the other.
In the East, monarchs appear to be rebounding for the first time in years. Some researchers counted a 144% increase in overwintering monarchs in late 2018, the highest numbers recorded since 2006.
This story is from the August/September 2019 edition of Birds & Blooms.
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This story is from the August/September 2019 edition of Birds & Blooms.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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Sense or Nonsense? - Why some birds can taste and smell - but others can't
Does a porcelain berry taste like a blueberry to a gray catbird? Does a block of lard smell like frying bacon to a northern flicker? The short answer is no. While some avian species do have a well-adapted sense of taste or smell, they can't distinguish between flavors and odors the way humans can. They're not picking up every ingredient in the suet you put out, says José Ramírez-Garofalo, an ornithology researcher at Rutgers University in New Jersey and the director of Freshkills Biological Station in Staten Island, New York.
Maple Mania - Amazing facts about this fall foliage mainstay
Amazing facts about this fall foliage mainstay
Food-Focused and Fierce - Meet Canada jays and learn why they eat almost anything they can find
Even if you haven't heard of Canada jays, you've heard of their relatives. Members of the corvid family, they belong to the same group as American crows, blackbilled magpies, and jays including blue, Steller's and scrub. "Unlike many of the other jays, a Canada jay doesn't have a crest of any kind; it just has a rounded head," says Dale Gentry, director of conservation for Audubon Upper Mississippi River.In 2018, the Canada jay's name was changed from gray jay, but Dale thinks the former adjective was fitting. "Most of its body is shades of gray with some white," he says. "There are different subspecies that have different physical traits, but most of them have some lighter coloring on their foreheads, upper breasts and throats, each with a darker streak that starts at each eye and goes back."
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