Open Magazine - Index

Open Magazine - magazine - Index

Photo by Norm Lightfoot eco-art TM
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Butterfly
Passion
by Lee Anne Andriessen
A collection of over 25,000 butterfly
specimens, information and documentation
are under the wings of John G. Powers, the
“Butterfly Man.” He is a naturalist, public
speaker, educator, researcher, and butterfly
enthusiast extraordinaire. Wearing a shirt with
a monarch butterfly printed pattern, Powers’
enthusiasm permeates the room.
In over 49 years of studying and educating others
about butterflies, Powers has had the honour of sharing his
passion with over 300 world famous celebrities associated
with this butterfly, including Queen Elizabeth, Anne Murray
and Roger Whittaker. Powers was first introduced to butterflies
by his father when he was given a butterfly net and was
encouraged to explore nature. This was the fuel that sparked a
lifelong passion. Later, he shared ongoing correspondence with
Dr. Fred Urquhart, leading up to, and following his breakthrough
discovery of the monarchs’ migration to Mexico. When asked
about highlights in his career, he doesn’t talk about the
celebrities. He shares about how he helped to co-ordinate the
journey of Vico Guttierrez of Mexico who was the first to pilot
his ultralight plane to follow the flight of the monarchs from
Canada to Mexico. Powers explained how he met Guttierrez
when he arrived in Mexico and saw the awesome sight of
millions of monarchs flying at about 3,700 metres (12000 feet).
“All I could think about at that moment was, ‘That one is from
Toronto and that one is from Ottawa and this one is from New
York.’ It was an experience of a lifetime.”
When asked about the challenges facing monarch
butterflies, Powers shared two concerns. In Mexico, illegal
logging activity has occurred which has removed precious forest
habitat from the butterflies. Recently, the Mexican government
has hired policemen to monitor the forests so that the habitat
can be maintained. His second concern relates to the spraying
and removal of milkweed plants. Milkweed is critical for
butterflies to lay their eggs and they require this plant for their
sustainability. Powers indicated that the removal of milkweed
is part of the Noxious Weed Control Act in Ontario. However,
12 Open Magazine Summer 2008
he chuckled when he said that a decrease in
government spending has led to cutbacks in
spraying the noxious weeds and this cutback has
been a benefit to the butterflies.
Powers believes that the “s” in sustainability
relates to sharing knowledge for greater
understanding. With a sparkle in his eyes and
an enthusiastic energy, Powers takes this role
seriously when he educates the public about
butterflies. During Butterfly Days in September
at the Naturium Butterfly Conservatory outside of
Breslau, Ontario, visitors have the opportunity to tag
monarch butterflies with very small, self adhesive,
stickers that have serial numbers and identification
so that the butterflies can be monitored during their
migratory journey. Each tag is about the size of the
fingernail of a little child’s small finger. If a monarch
butterfly stops during its journey, researchers will report
when the butterfly arrived and when it left again. For a small
fee, you can have the chance to tag your own butterfly, and
if it is sighted during the migration route to Mexico, you will
be contacted. All proceeds during this event are donated to
charity.
Marco Kennema, from Greenway Blooming Centre in
Breslau, has worked closely with John G. Powers at Naturium
and agrees with his concerns for monarch butterflies. Kennema
indicated that monarchs can be supported in their migratory
journey by creating butterfly gardens stocked with host plants
and nectar plants on which the monarch butterflies depend.
Kennema stated that, “Butterfly gardens act like a billboard,
advertising food and shelter for monarch butterflies. Plants in
your garden help the monarchs to fuel up and gain strength to
fly south.”
“Scarlet milkweed, asclepias curassavica, is the perfect
plant for monarch butterflies,” suggested Kennema. It is an
annual plant that flowers all summer with blossoms that
are a combination of yellow, red and orange. The plant is
an excellent host for the developing caterpillars. Monarch
butterflies require a great deal of nourishment to prepare for
the long migratory journey. One of their favourite nectar plants
is the purple-top vervain, verbena bonariensis, which blooms
all summer with purple flowers. It grows to about 1.25 metres
(4 feet) and spreads to a width of about one metre (3 feet).
Purple-top vervain grows best in full sun.
With its bright orange wings and prominent black
markings, the monarch butterfly is the most universally
recognized butterfly. In the last 30 years, incredible scientific
knowledge has been gained about the migration of the
monarch and as the research carries on, John Powers and
Marco Kennema will continue to inspire others with their
passion for butterflies.