Butterfly Mortality and Salvage Logging from the March 2016 Storm in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Mexico

Brower, Lincoln P.; Williams, Ernest H.; Jaramillo-López, Pablo F.; Kust, David R; Slayback, D. A.; Ramírez, M. Isabel

doi:10.1093/ae/tmx052

Cited by 26 publications

(22 citation statements)

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“…(sacred fir) forests, which comprise the Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) overwintering sites in the core area of the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve (MBBR) at the border between the Michoacán and Estado de México states in west-central Mexico, are occasionally subject to serious disturbances, likely related to climate change. For example, in a single night in March 2016, a windstorm felled approximately 20,000 trees and damaged many more (Brower et al, 2017;Fondo Monarca, 2017; Figure S1). Such disturbances undoubtedly reduce stand density ( Figure S2) and, when combined with illegal cutting (Brower et al, 2016; Figure S3), are decreasing the umbrella and blanket effect (sensu Anderson and Brower, 1996) that protects overwintering Monarch butterfly colonies.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecological Restoration of Abies religiosa Forests Using Nurse Plants and Assisted Migration in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, Mexico

et al. 2019

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecological Restoration of Abies religiosa Forests Using Nurse Plants and Assisted Migration in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, Mexico

et al. 2019

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“…Field studies constituted one of the principal methods documenting the effects of sudden changes in environmental conditions and adverse weather patterns in the decline of monarch butterflies (50% of total studies on adverse weather events, Brower et al, 2015Brower et al, , 2017, but only a single study considered the effect of extreme weather patterns before fall migration (25% of total studies on adverse weather events, Hunt and Tongen, 2017). Field studies examined the physiological response of monarchs to changes in environmental conditions in the southern portion of the migratory range , but controlled studies that assessed field-realistic, shortterm changes in environmental variables such as temperature, humidity, precipitation, or solar radiation on the physiological condition and survival during the breeding season were absent.…”

Section: Change In Suitable Abiotic Environmental Conditionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similarly, few studies applied modeling techniques that evaluated the impact of weather extremes on monarch population viability (Flockhart et al, 2015;Hunt and Tongen, 2017). The peer-reviewed literature suggested a negative impact of adverse weather patterns on monarch butterflies (50% of total studies on adverse weather events, Brower et al, 2017;Hunt and Tongen, 2017) and these conditions could impact monarchs at each stage of their life cycle (Hunt and Tongen, 2017). Though sporadic events may result in considerable losses, the timing of the events is also suggested to alter the severity of the impact.…”

Section: Change In Suitable Abiotic Environmental Conditionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Insect populations are experiencing rapid declines globally (Dirzo et al, 2014;Stork et al, 2015) that may have implications for ecosystem function and contributions to economic services (Allen-Wardell et al, 1998;Potts et al, 2010). Changes in the suitability of environmental conditions driven by extreme weather and climate change (Batalden et al, 2007;Barve et al, 2012;Brower et al, 2017), habitat loss (Didham et al, 1996;Fattorini, 2011;Thogmartin et al, 2017b), exposure to contaminants Thogmartin et al, 2017b), and changes in species interactions (e.g., invasive species, Burghardt and Tallamy, 2015) can have profound effects on biodiversity. The substantial loss of biodiversity within the insect taxon emphasizes their sensitivity to environmental perturbations, but also makes them ideal bioindicators (Lenhard and Witter, 1977;Nummelin et al, 2007) for testing the impact of threats and their downstream effects.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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An Evaluation of Studies on the Potential Threats Contributing to the Decline of Eastern Migratory North American Monarch Butterflies (Danaus plexippus)

et al. 2019

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The migratory monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) of eastern North America have undergone large-scale declines, which may be attributable to a variety of underlying causes. The uncertainty about the primary cause of declines and whether individual threats are likely to increase in the future presents challenges for developing effective conservation management and policy initiatives that aim to improve population viability. This paper identifies five potential threats and classifies these threats according to the types of studies (observational, experimental, simulation/models) and their current impact and anticipated risk. Broadly, the threats can be classified into five categories: (1) change in suitable abiotic environmental conditions; (2) deforestation in the overwintering range;(3) exposure to contaminants including the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis, herbicides, and insecticides; (4) loss of breeding habitat; and (5) predation, parasitism, and species-specific pathogens. The vast distribution of the monarch butterfly makes it likely that population declines are attributed to a suite of interacting factors that vary spatially and temporally in their contribution. Nonetheless, the published papers we reviewed suggest the decline in suitable environmental conditions in addition to overwintering (i.e., deforestation) and breeding habitat loss are the most likely threats to continue to affect the population viability of monarch butterflies.

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“…Historically, the forests of the MBBR have been managed. In the buffer zone, particularly in mixed pine-fir and pine stands, commercial logging is allowed under certain restrictions, following a selective logging method (Navarrete et al 2011), while salvage logging in the core zone is allowed only after severe blizzards and bark beetle detections (Brower et al 2017). No large insect outbreaks had been documented in the MBRR in the last 15 years (Camarillo-Luna 2018).…”

Section: Study Sitementioning

confidence: 99%

Dendrochronological reconstruction of fire history in coniferous forests in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, Mexico

Sáenz-Ceja

Pérez-Salicrup

2019

fire ecol

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Background: Some have proposed that fire return intervals lengthen with elevation in montane tropical coniferous forests, such as those found in central Mexico. This would generate patterns of synchronous tree establishment in higher elevation forests dominated by Abies sp. Mill., and patterns of continuous tree establishment in lower elevation forests dominated by Pinus sp. L. However, it is common to find codominant stands of both genera at intermediate elevations. The Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve (MBBR) is located in this region, and is covered by Abies religiosa (Kunth) Schltdl. & Cham-dominant forest, A. religiosa-Pinus pseudostrobus Lindley-codominant forest, and P. pseudostrobus-dominant forest. Despite the ecological importance of the MBBR's coniferous forests, little is known about their fire return intervals, including their relationship with climate, and their effects on tree establishment patterns according to the elevational range proposed above. In this study, using dendrochronological techniques, we reconstructed the historical fire return intervals for each forest type, evaluated their relationship with droughts and with the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), and assessed the effect of fire return intervals on tree establishment patterns. A total of 110 cross-sections were obtained, from 23 sites across the MBBR. Results: The fire chronology covered the period between 1925 and 2015. Fire return intervals averaged two years in stands dominated by A. religiosa, by P. pseudostrobus, and codominated by both species, regardless of elevation. No fire-free periods were detected, even after the establishment of the reserve in 2000. Fire frequency was not associated with periods of drought and ENSO. There was no relationship between fire return intervals and patterns of tree establishment, which was continuous in all three forest types. Conclusions: Our results suggest that coniferous forests of the MBBR have historically experienced frequent fires that are unrelated to climate and tree establishment. This may be evidence that natural fire regimes in these coniferous forests have been drastically altered by human activities. Although these frequent low-severity fires could adversely affect tree regeneration, and eventually decrease the integrity of the overwintering habitat of the Monarch Butterfly, the continuous tree regeneration observed suggests that these effects have not yet taken place.

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Butterfly Mortality and Salvage Logging from the March 2016 Storm in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Mexico

Cited by 26 publications

References 11 publications

Ecological Restoration of Abies religiosa Forests Using Nurse Plants and Assisted Migration in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, Mexico

Ecological Restoration of Abies religiosa Forests Using Nurse Plants and Assisted Migration in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, Mexico

An Evaluation of Studies on the Potential Threats Contributing to the Decline of Eastern Migratory North American Monarch Butterflies (Danaus plexippus)

Dendrochronological reconstruction of fire history in coniferous forests in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, Mexico

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