Winter 2016-2017 Against All Odds A Poem by George Kittell It was the 8th of October on Lake of the Isles And so far our paddling approached some 5 miles; The wind was near calm, a bit from the north, And the temp was the coldest this fall going forth.

46 degrees and noon was the hour, And over us nary a cloud as we plowered; 'Twas then we encountered an orange butterfly -- One that was floating, unable to fly.

A monarch, a male, I could tell by the spots, And fated to migrate, though this one could not; I picked up the critter and laid in the boat, Understandably wet and for how long afloat?

It lay in the sun by my spare paddle's shaft, Its orange wings outstretched in the bed of our craft; From Lake of the Isles we entered Calhoun, And now it was probably quarter-past-noon.

'Twas then that the butterfly started to shake, It quivered and shivered, if cold, to me spake; It crawled on the shaft of my paddle, the spare, A blink of my eye it was up in the air. Monarch drying its wings after eclosion on New It sailed in the north wind, then ever so slight, England Aster. Photo by Mary Holland. And in a few seconds it was out of sight; A mile it needed to traverse this lake, But great are the odds that a whole journey takes. Send in your photos and artistic Only above 50 degrees can it fly, contributions for consideration in a future Now late to migrate and with worsening sky, newsletter! 2000 miles with incredible odds, monarchlab.org/mlmp/gallery/art/submit-your-work Southwest for weeks it relentless must plod. 2003 Upper Buford Circle | 135 Skok Hall St. Paul, MN, 55108

Winter Monitoring Tips Refresh your skills or learn a new activity by reviewing the MLMP Online Training Videos! In this online course, you’ll learn how to identify all life stages of monarchs, and about their amazing annual cycle of breeding, migrating and overwintering. You’ll also learn how you can contribute to our understanding of this incredible insect by joining the Monarch Larva Monitoring Project, or MLMP. You can pick and choose which videos to watch, and there’s even a certificate of completion and follow along note taking document to help guide you through the videos. http://monarchlab.org/mlmp/training/online-training MLMP Summer 2016 Data We are still working on analyzing the monarch density and survival data contributed by MLMP volunteers in 2016. As expected after the severe winter storm that hit the overwintering colonies in March 2016, just before the monarchs began their journey north, numbers were lower than last year. In fact, they were very similar to those reported in 2014 (but thankfully not as low as those reported in 2013). Based on these findings, we anticipate that the size of the winter colonies this year will be in the 1 to 1.5 hectare range. However, volunteers in the southern part of the breeding range reported a surge in numbers in late August and September, which could make up for the low numbers earlier in the summer. MLMP Tachinid Fly Discovery Update From 1999 to June 2016, MLMP volunteers collected and reared 20,837 monarch eggs and larvae. Of those reared, the frequency of tachinid fly parasitism was 9.8% overall, but parasitism increased with larval instar, reaching a maximum of 17% parasitized in fifth instar larvae. Throughout this time, we received 1,146 fly specimens from volunteers that we were able to identify to species, with the help of Dr. John Stireman’s lab at Wright State University. We found a surprising amount of diversity in our collection from 16 different states spanning from California to Maine. Seven Tachinidae species were found to parasitize monarchs, and are listed below with the associated states from which samples were contributed.  Lespesia archippivora: IA, MI, MN, ND, WI, NY, OH, PA, MD, AZ, CA, OK, TX  Hyphantrophaga virilis: MI, WI, ME, PA, NC, FL  Compsilura concinnata: IA, MI, MN, TX  Leschenaultia sp.: MI, PA, NC, OK  Madremyia saundersii: MI and AZ  Lespesia sp.: MI  Nilea erecta: WI Tachinid flies are one of the most speciose families of insects, and experts posit there are many new species yet to be discovered. Although the majority (75%) of tachinid specimens were Lespesia archippivora, the identification of six other species (including one undescribed species!) greatly expands our knowledge about the relationship between tachinids and monarchs. This collection offers unique opportunities to test ecological questions regarding tachinid parasitoid distribution and movement, host choice, parasitism rates in monarchs, and other population level questions. If you actively rear wild-collected monarchs, the MLMP is interested in your observations through our Activity #3: Estimating Monarch Survival. For any that were parasitized, make sure to send us your fly specimens. Your contribution could play a vital role in the discovery of a new species!

University of Minnesota Monarch Lab researchers use specimens from MLMP Activity #3 Estimating Monarch Survival to learn more about tachinid fly behavior and parasitism rates in monarchs. These specimens were used in creating a Tachinid ID Manual and came from volunteers across the U.S. From left to right: Lespesia archippovora, Hyphantrophaga virilis. Photos by the University of MN Monarch Lab. MLMP How-To: How should I keep my monarchs organized (for Activity 3)? If you’re an avid monarch raiser, you know that it can get complicated Photo: W. Caldwell caring for numerous individuals and keeping them all straight for your MLMP reports (Activity 3, Estimating Survival). One of the easiest ways to organize them is to keep each individual in a different container. We recommend doing this for many reasons; the main reason is to minimize any risk of spreading disease between them. In any case, it is very important that if you are raising monarchs, you do so responsibly, and report your observations to MLMP. Here are some tips for labeling your containers to keep track of who is who:  Use labels that can be easily transferred from one container to another, in case you need to switch. We use colored label tape, but masking tape or painting tape works equally as well.  Design your labels for easy sorting. If you collect from multiple sites, consider color coding, or starting each label with a unique set of letters. For example, we collect from multiple areas for this activity (Falcon Heights Park, Karen’s Yard, etc.) and use letters to help categorize where a monarch came from. All of our monarchs from Falcon Heights Park begin with the letters FHP, so our monarchs are FHP1, FHP2, FHP3, etc., and those from Karen’s house are K1, K2, K3 and so on.  Keep track of different sites from which you collect monarchs on different Activity 3 datasheets and use an alphanumeric system to allow you to easily refer back to a data record when something about an individual you are raising changes. FHP26 Even if you only collect from one site, it is still good practice to keep Collected 7/1/2016 as 4th instar some association about where they came from on your label (vs. just a number).  In case you forget to record something, or you happen to lose your datasheet, try to keep as much detail on the label as you can. Include things like the unique identifying number you assigned, the date you collected the monarch, and the stage at which you collected it. If short on room, one opportunity to save containers would be to put together individuals that were collected from the same location, on the same date, in the same stage. For example, if you collected three 4th instar larvae from Falcon Heights Park, you could put them together into one appropriately sized container. Create a unique identifier for each and record their details on the datasheet. Since they all have the same history, simply record the fate of each under one of the corresponding numbers. New Research Uses MLMP Data to Inform Monarch Conservation In 2016, MLMP data were used to publish 6 papers on topics ranging from the extinction risk of the eastern monarch population, to citizen science data quality, to the distribution of monarch predators. More information on these papers, and others using MLMP data, can be found at www.MonarchNet.org.  Species distribution models for natural enemies of monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) larvae and pupae: distribution patterns and implications for conservation. McCoshum SM, Andreoli SL, Stenoien CM, Oberhauser KS, Baum KA. Journal of Insect Conservation. 2016.  Quasi-extinction risk and population targets for the Eastern, migratory population of monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus). Semmens BX, Semmens DJ, Thogmartin WE, Wiederholt R, López-Hoffman L, Diffendorfer JE, Pleasants JM, Oberhauser KS, Taylor OR. Scientific Reports. 2016;6.  Monarchs in decline: A collateral landscape level effect of modern agriculture. Stenoien C, Nail KR, Zalucki JM, Parry H, Oberhauser KS, Zalucki MP. Insect Science. 2016 Sep 1.  A trans-national monarch butterfly population model and implications for regional conservation priorities. Oberhauser KS, Wiederholt R, Diffendorfer JE, Semmens D, Ries L, Thogmartin WE, Lopez-Hoffman LA, Semmens B. Ecological Entomology. 2016 Oct 1.  Can roadside habitat lead monarchs on a route to recovery? Kasten K, Stenoien C, Caldwell W, Oberhauser KS. Journal of Insect Conservation. 2016:1-1.  Assessing data quality in citizen science. Kosmala M, Wiggins A, Swanson A, Simmons B. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 2016 Dec 1;14(10):551-60. Reader Feedback: Please email us at [email protected] if you have any questions or comments about the newsletter, or if you would like to contribute something in a future issue.