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To: thinkingfountain@smm.org
Subject: life span
From: Ben
Date: Sun, 27 Jul 1997 16:27:32 -0400 (EDT)
To whomever this may concern,
We were having a dinner discussion last week on the subject
of M butterflies. No one in the family knows the life span
of these butterflies. We have searched every book in the
house and haven't found any information regarding our
question. Would you please be so kind as to inform us
regarding this matter.
Thank you
for your help.
Sicerely,
Ben
>To: Ben
>From: Karen Wilkinson <[email protected]>
>Subject: Re: life span
>
>Hi Ben,
>
>I am raising monarchs on my kitchen table right now (and just released the
>first butterfly yesterday). I was surprised to learn that monarchs don't
>live very long (about 2 to 6 weeks) but encouraged by to know that
>migrating monarchs live much longer. I have noticed more monarchs this
>week than I have all summer.
>
>I found the answer to your question by looking on the Internet at the
>Journey North site (http://www.learner.org/content/k12/jnorth). The "Ask
>the Expert" area had a response, from Dr. Karen Oberhauser. Karen is an
>entomolgist who works at the local University here in Minnesota and
>studies the monarch butterfly all over North America.
>
>Q. How long do Monarchs live?
>
>A. This depends on when they live (summer or winter), and also varies a lot
>among individuals (just like it does it humans).
>In the summer, adults live from 2 to 6 weeks in captivity, and probably
>about that long in the wild. The ones that migrate live
>longer, from August or September to about April (although a lot die before
>this). When people hear this, they say they'd
>rather be a migratory monarchs, but these butterflies probably face many
>more risks, and are likely to have a smaller chance of
>getting offspring into the next generation.
>
>Thanks for writing,
>-karen
__________________________________________________
Karen Wilkinson ([email protected])
Content Developer, Science Learning Network
http://www.sci.mus.mn.us
Science Museum of Minnesota
30 East Tenth Street
St Paul, MN 55101
612-221-2512 (phone)
612-221-4528 (fax)
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