Monarch production will not be replicated next year, experts warn,
as above average temperatures will cause problems
Associated Press in Mexico City
Wed 30 Jan 2019 21.28 GMTLast modified on Thu 31 Jan
2019 18.10 GMT
The population of monarch butterflies wintering in central Mexico is
up 144% over last year, according to new research.
The data was cheered but scientists quickly warned that it does
not mean the butterflies that migrate from Canada and the United States are out
of danger.
This winter, researchers found the butterflies occupying 14.95
acres (6.05 hectares) of pine and fir forests in the mountains of Michoacán and
Mexico states – an increase from 6.12 acres a year ago.
This year’s is the biggest measurement since the 2006-2007 period,
said Andrew Rhodes, Mexico’s national commissioner for protected natural
areas. A
historic low of just 1.66 acres (0.67 hectares) was recorded in 2013-2014.
Jorge Rickards, director of World Wildlife Fund
in Mexico which participates in the monitoring, cautioned that the butterflies,
like other insects, see their annual populations rise and fall and the monarchs
have had a declining trend. This year’s number was positive, but there is no
guarantee it will continue.
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