A study published Tuesday found that one-third of Ohio’s butterfly population had died between 1996 and 2016. The results are troubling for more important pollinators like bees, researchers said.
(CNN)Aside from a crushing loss for biodiversity, the steep decline in the US butterfly population could represent a trend for fellow insects that power American agriculture.
In what they say is the largest and longest study of butterfly populations in North America, a team of researchers found that Ohio’s butterfly population declined by a third over 20 years.
From 1996 to 2016, thousands of volunteers recorded the number of butterflies they spotted across Ohio over a six-month period.
Researchers attribute the decline to climate change, habitat degradation and insecticides…
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Exposing the Big Game 
I have some Monarchs in my small garden. The caterpillars are so beautiful and adorable. I’ve never seen them so tiny! Some didn’t make it, but some are thriving and there have been more hatchlings. In a world of spraying, this little oasis is a relief!
Update: My Monarch caterpillars that survived are getting big now – BUT the state is going to be conducting aerial spraying for mosquitoes throughout the area, and twice for good measure!
Any idea how I can protect the caterpillars and the milkweed before the Messerschmidts start
bombingspraying? I thought of putting a tarp over the garden but I don’t know if that would make matters worse. I hate this stuff. A neighbor sprays, the county sprays on the ground, and now this. 😦