I'm looking forward to the return of butterflies - that is if there are any left.

Cabbage butterflies and fireweed.

Spring, flowers, and butterflies.  A potent combination that would make anyone stop and take the scene in, if only just for a moment.  Stopping to smell the roses just becomes a whole lot better if there are butterflies involved.  

Unfortunately, butterfly populations are down across the globe.  Like most other forms of life, the decline in Lepidoptera is due to the activities of man.  In order to thrive, we have tamed the landscape by adapting it to suit our needs.  We destroy forests, bulldoze swamps, and turn open areas into crops or grasslands.

But that's not the end of it.  No sir, destroying habitat is just the beginning.  Our need for controlling nature turns to chemistry where we use sprays and powders to kill any would-be pests that might feed on our crops or damage our foliage.  Not only does this keep nature in check locally, the overspray and leeched chemicals get into what little natural habitat is left and increase the carnage further.

And just when we thought that this was the extent of destruction, we discover that invasive plants and animals are adding further to the decline.  Foreign organisms displace native ones.  The list is long, and is becoming longer.  Knapweed.  Zebra muscles.  Reed canary grass.  Many native butterfly species feed only on certain kinds of plants.  The great spangled fritillary, a butterfly I have only photographed twice, feeds exclusively on violets in larval form.  Although this species does not seem to be in decline, many of its relatives are.

Fritillary butterfly photographed in Leduc, Alberta

One of the biggest concerns we face is the decline of biodiversity.  This happens when the number of species in an ecosystem decreases.  It is a slow process that results from habitat loss, species displacement or extinction from an area, invasive species taking over, and even intentional species removal from hunting.  Globally we are in line to create another massive extinction event, only this time it won't be a meteor causing it.  It will be us.

Thanks for reading.

Eric Svendsen     www.ericspix.com


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