The Last Buzz

Mary Ann

Every once in a while, you have to drag out the soapbox, dust it off, step up, and shout!  That time is now. Three years ago, I put a butterfly garden in the front of my house – butterfly bushes, milkweed, coneflowers, lantana, salvia, lavender, etc.  It was a smorgasbord of yummies for butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds.  It was a pleasure to sit on my front porch watching them dance among the flowers. There was a huge variety of insects, and I felt I like I was helping the planet.  That year there were 28 monarchs.  

The following year, there was only one monarch and not as many of the bigger butterflies. However, the skipper population was thriving.   I called the county extension agency to see what was going on with the butterflies.  I was told some years are like that.  We are now in the middle of year three, and so far, this summer I have only seen one, lone monarch.  I have milkweed blooming, and nothing is eating it. Even the skippers have diminished.  My nature-loving neighbors are all saying the same thing.  We get excited and call or text one another when we see a yellow swallowtail or a hummingbird.  Now, I do have friends elsewhere that do have many hummingbirds – thank heavens! 

I do believe this is a flashing red light warning us that there is something wrong. Regardless, what some people are saying, the climate is changing, and it is affecting our lives.  If all the humans suddenly disappeared from the planet, nothing would change.  Nature would heal, and the web of life would continue getting stronger with the passing years.  If all the pollinators disappeared, it would affect all the plants and then humans.  If all the ants or earthworms disappeared, the same thing would happen. 

For a time, many years ago, I lived in Monterey, CA.  On the Monterey Peninsula, there is a little town called Pacific Grove.  It is the butterfly capital of the world.  Each winter western monarchs came by the millions to winter in the moderate climate of the region.  You would look up in the trees and think you were seeing leaves, but they were butterflies soaking up the sun. The groves were just magical.  In the last few years, they have counted about 1200 monarch in some of the groves.  Monarchs are now endangered species. 

I have seen it happen in the east in these last three years.  The monarch life cycle is a miracle, and it is sad to think it may disappear.  I am not sure what to do about it.   I have planted milkweed, and I try not to use insecticides though our HOA does but not in my gardens. I guess pray!

When I sit in my patio garden, I may see one bee flitting around the flowers or see a pair of white cabbage butterflies dancing like ghosts among the plants.  Again, I have planted a host of flowering plants for pollinators to enjoy.  They are just not there.  I can enjoy the flowers, but I miss the insect activity.  I wonder if the beginning of the end is starting.  What can I do?  What can we all do?  I fear a day will come when I will hear the last buzz.