Donations Needed - Help Save the Monarchs

One of my favorite past times is gardening, more specifically butterfly gardening. I enjoy gardening for wildlife of all forms and photographing them whenever possible. And not to mention that I am an Environmental Horticulturist, so gardening is my thing!

My humble abode and grounds (only a 1/4 acre) is certified as a Backyard Wildlife Habitat through National Wildlife Federation and certified as a Monarch Waystation through Monarch Watch. So, needless to say I have a lot of host and nectar plants for the butterflies in my neck of the woods.

I have lots of milkweed, passion vine, pipevine, cassia, dill, parsley, citrus, just to name a few, that are host plants for the caterpillars. There is Firebush, Flame Vine, Zinnias, coneflower and many Florida native shrubs that supply nectar from the flowers and food for the birds from the fruit.

I have several bird and squirrel feeders and birdbaths. Sometimes when the feeders are empty and I fill them, within a few minutes the birds come from out of nowhere to feed. I put peanuts out for the squirrels and Blue Jays and it's like they are hiding, waiting and watching. In a short time those peanuts are gone!


I have to mention this because it's the coolest thing I have seen in my yard lately. I have lots of different birds, ducks, squirrels, raccoons, possums that visit and feed out of the "bird" feeders. I now call them the "critter feeders"! OH, did I mention that my backyard is fenced?

Anyway, I was reading the newspaper and my dog, Kodie, got up and ran barking to the sliding doors out to the patio. I looked to see what got him riled and lo' and behold, a bobcat was in the yard just off the patio. All I could do was get up to get a closer look. Wow, it's was awesome. My only regret is that I didn't have my camera handy and that the bobcat ran away too quickly.

I'm sure a lot of you would freak out over a bobcat in your yard. But why? It's more afraid of you than you are of him and what's he (or she) going to do? You're inside and he's (or she's) outside. Get over it and be blessed and thankful that you saw such a beautiful site, in your own yard, no doubt!

So you ask, "What has this got to do with Monarch Conservation?" I'll tell you, nothing and everything. Everything we do has an impact on the wildlife around us, whether good or bad. What we have to do is do something to give back what we are quickly taking away. For one day it may be gone and then it's too late.

Please read on......

Have you ever watched a butterfly deposit her eggs on plants in your yard, at the park, or maybe even at a butterfly sanctuary? Have you ever seen a teeny, tiny caterpillar just after it has hatched from its egg? Have you ever watched the caterpillar change into a chrysalis?





Have you ever seen a butterfly break from its chrysalis, hang there with its fat, plump body and short wings and then start to pump those built up fluids throughout its wings? And then hang there to dry before she takes her first flight?





If you've never seen any of these great wonders of the world, you are seriously missing out on one of God's greatest creations. With a lifespan from egg to death of only a few short weeks, where it takes about 30 days to go from egg to adult and then the butterfly will only live roughly four to six weeks. Poof! They're gone.

With their habitats being destroyed minute by minute, it's up to us to keep them alive and free, or they could be gone in a "poof." Take my challenge and help keep them around for us and future generations to enjoy.

All it takes is to plant host and nectar plants in your yard, your neighbor's yard, the park, the roadside, everywhere. Even just one container will do a lot and who knows you may find yourself hooked when you see that first beautiful Monarch or Black Swallowtail stop and sip some sweet nectar from, get this, YOUR flowers.





Another very important thing I have to add is NEVER use pesticides. Not only are they harmful to the environment, but it will kill the caterpillars and the butterflies and other beneficial insects. If you feel it's really necessary, try mixing a small amount of Dawn Dishwashing liquid and water in a spray bottle and spray the insect pests directly.

Check out the database on Caterpillar Host Plants, it will give you the answers to what plants the caterpillars in your area need. Do a little research and see what butterflies frequent your area. We know the Monarch is in almost all of the US.

There's an article at National Wildlife Federation's web site by Heather Millar about Restoring Rare Beauties. Read it and decide for yourself, do I help or wait and just hope that someone else will do it?

You can do it alone as shown in this article Surviving on a Wing and a Prayer where just one man, Thomas Emmel, saved the Schaus Swallowtail butterfly from near extinction. If he can do it alone, just think what we could do if we all banded together. We would not only be helping save the butterflies, but we would also reap the rewards of the beauty we created in our own little corner of the world.

Buy a copy: 8 X 10 $15.00, 11 X 14 $25.00, larger sizes available by request.

Copies of this photo may be purchased by contacting me. I will donate a portion (50%) of the proceeds to MonarchWatch. MonarchWatch is not on Squidoo's list of charities and it is one of my favorites.

More photos

Butterfly Style - Laminated Print


Clyde - Framed


Perfection & Beauty - Laminated


Giant Swallowtail - Matted


Painted Lady - Matted

All butterfly photos in this lens (excluding Flickr, Amazon & Allposters) are copyrighted and may not be reproduced, copied or used in any form without prior written consent. Copyright © 2008 Donna Adamski - All rights reserved.

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Save the Monarchs T-Shirt
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ChileMama

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First, I'd like to say I have "met" many butterfly enthusiasts through eBay that have bought various butterfly gardening seeds from me. One fairly recent buyer is now a total butterfly, I don't really want to say "freak", but he had become completely enamored with raising butterflies.

He e-mails me updates on his progress and I couldn't be more happy that he had found a passion that helps the wildlife world.

Here's a quote from a recent e-mail. "I have been releasing butterflies almost every day. I only have had three black swallowtails so far but I've found 8 more cats on my dill plants so I am accomplishing what I set out to do. I have 7 black swallowtails and 4 monarchs to release in the next few days and then 33 more over the next 3 to 4 weeks. They are all beautiful and I hate to see them fly away. Bob"

Great news! Bob has just informed me that he has Monarch Watch Waystation #2173. Way to go! And thank you for your contributions to help save the Monarchs.

It just warms my heart to know that from selling someone a few milkweed seeds would bring such joy. I know how much joy it brings me to look out the window and see many different butterflies "floating" around my yard. Or having them fly around me when I'm out working in the yard. On another note, I get to watch them almost year round because I live where "winters" are very mild.

How can you help? Read on....

OK, here's where we get down to business. "How can I help?" you ask. Well, you know I'm going to tell you how!

First let me point out that Monarch Watch or the National Wildlife Federation is NOT on Squidoo's charity list. These are foundations that I feel strongly about and support. I'm a member of the NWF Leaders Club where I donate on a monthly basis (comes right out of my checking account) and send donations to Monarch Watch.


So, now comes my proposal...I want you to help by donating just a few dollars to help save these great beauties. Wow, that was tough! Now that it is out in the open, here's my offer. I want to be able to give a minimum of $10,000 to Monarch Watch before the fall migration of the Monarchs this year. Migration usually starts around late September through October. So, there's not a lot of time left. Go ahead and check them out and see what all they do to help the Monarchs.

As you may know, the Monarchs west of the Rocky Mountains "hibernate" in California and those East of the Rockies fly to Mexico to spend the winter. Those here in Florida are usually year round residents.

For every $5.00 that you donate, you will receive a pack of 50 Red Milkweed Asclepias curassavica seeds for starting or adding to your butterfly garden. Milkweed is the only host plant that the Monarch and Queen butterflies will use to lay their eggs.

So what happens with that $5.00? Of that $5.00, $2.50 will be donated to Monarch Watch and the balance will cover my expenses of seed and shipping & handling.

No third party to take out another percentage of the donation like a lot of the "askees" have. I know eBay uses a third party and Squidoo probably does too for their charity donations.

Any donation amount you chose to send will be welcome, whether it's $1.00 or $100.00. But I can only send seeds to those that donate at least $5.00.

On top of that, any sales from anything posted in this lens, whether it be from Amazon, Allposters or the sale of my Monarch photo, a minimum of 50% of all monies received will also be donated. You can find more butterfly photos at my Photo Adoption Agency gallery.

It's a win-win situation for all. The Monarchs get the help they need and you get the satisfaction of knowing that you helped.

See what the Imperiled Butterflies Workgroup,
IBWG and the FWG are doing to help save the butterflies.

So, please contact me to help save the Monarch Butterfly today. Before their habitats, both here and in Mexico are gone. Please use Monarch Donation as subject. Thank you.

Maybe you think that this is all a crock. Not so, my caterpillars (no longer grasshoppers!). Here's a few pictures of the real me (sorry, not actually of me, the camera broke!) But just some incite of my love of not just butterflies, but all wildlife!

One nectar flower that no butterfly can resist! The Beach Sunflower, Helianthus debilis. And contrary to its name, it will grow far away from the beach!

A very small section of my backyard showing a few bird feeders, birdbath and in the background on the fence, my Monarch Waystation sign.

All it takes is just one milkweed plant to start saving the Monarchs. This is a "volunteer" plant that came up not long ago. I have many milkweed plants growing in the front and back yards.

A close up of the Monarch Watch Waystation sign. I'm member number 293 of over 2,000 since this project was started a couple of years ago. For more information visit the Monarch Watch Waystation Program web site.

This sign is barely visible now. I have it placed next to (now under) another native shrub the Beautyberry, Callicarpa americana. The sign is more visible during the winter, as the Beautyberry is semi-deciduous and now has gotten quite large since I first planted it. Get your yard ready for NWF certification as a Backyard Wildlife Habitat. All you need is to provide the four basic elements, food, water, shelter and a place to raise young. I bet you have those already. So go get certified today. Click on the link below. I'm member number 46359, and there are over 70,000 certified yards. Will you be the next one?

Supported links:
Monarch Watch is dedicated to saving the Monarchs through tagging, monitoring and other conservation means. The Monarch Waystation Program was started for others to help the Monarchs every day and throughout their migration period. My yard is waystation 293 out of over 2,100 registered waystations.
Live Monarch Foundation raises thousands of butterflies and milkweed and offers free milkweed seeds to start your own conservation efforts to save the Monarch in your own backyard.
Michoacan Reforestation and Habitat Protection Fund helps the Monarch's winter habitat through reforestation of the land that has been devastated through development and construction.
Monarch Sanctuary provides financial and scientific support to preserve the natural balance and diversity of the oyamel fir forests that are the overwintering grounds for the Monarchs.
Monarch Butterfly Works toward conservation and offers a lot of great information on gardening tips, life cycle, biology and much more.
National Wildlife Federation A familiar foundation that really works to save all forms of wildlife worldwide.
UF Wildlife Ecology Their mission is to foster education, expand knowledge, and reward scholarships, using multi-disciplinary approaches, for the purpose of understanding, managing, and conserving biological resources.
Florida Wildlife Federation Affiliated with the National Wildlife Federation, their goals are to help the wildlife of Florida.
The Humane Society of the Treasure Coast - my local Humane Society Shelter.
Orphie G's Emporium Buy butterfly plants and seeds for your butterfly garden. This is my ebay store.

Other links:
Do you Squidoo? Try it, it's great! Make a lens about whatever subject you choose.
My Blog The Vent Site I just started this one. Got a gripe? Tell me about it, that's what this blog is about!
Integrated Pest Management Information on how to control the pests in your lawn and garden, limiting the use of pesticides.
Come Join My Network at Digg
Visit Nature's Beauty for some great products and gifts.

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Monarch Postcard
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Please help me and my Garden Guardian save the Monarchs and other wildlife. Plant a garden and invite the critters into your yard and your heart. Think about all the joy those who already participate in having an "active" yard have in their lives. Sitting out on the patio with a cup of coffee, tea or hey, even a beer and watching the activities. And if you look closely at the Garden Guardian's left eye, you will see a Monarch chrysalis hanging from his brow.



Especially with the squirrels, what a show they can put on chasing each other up and down the trees across the yard. Or even watching them snack on food that you put out for them. Total bliss!


The ducks that come around looking for leftovers or to clean up the ground, so no food gets wasted!


Or the Blackswallow caterpillar sharing your parsley with you. A little for you, a lot for them, a little for you, a lot for them. Hey, you really didn't want any anyway, right?


We have to protect all our butterflies. The Monarchs are one of the most endangered because their habitats are diminishing fast. Not only here, but down south where they go for the winter. Soon, there will be no trees left for them to congregate in the thousands to enjoy a warm winter, before traveling some 3,000 miles back home to you.

Please contact me to give to this great cause. Save a Monarch today.

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