The Developing History of Monarch Butterflies
Stuff You Missed in History Class
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The Collection of James Pettiver
James pettiver was an apothecary in london. He collected the oldest specimens of monarchs known to white europeans. But his work came at a price that's really not acknowledged most of the time. His relationships with explorers and sailors who he asked to pick up unique items as they travelled around the world were often slave surgeons or captains, so no one could claim ignorance.
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Monarch butterflies are still in the middle of their story – and it’s one that is precarious. Humans are still trying to figure out a lot about them, and aspects of the monarch story have been misrepresented over the years.
Research:
- Monarch Joint Venture: https://monarchjointventure.org/
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- Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Danaus". Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 Feb. 2018, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Danaus-Greek-mythology
- Kathleen S. Murphy. “Collecting Slave Traders: James Petiver, Natural History, and the British Slave Trade.” The William and Mary Quarterly, vol. 70, no. 4, 2013, pp. 637–70. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.5309/willmaryquar.70.4.0637
- Müller-Wille, Staffan. "Carolus Linnaeus". Encyclopedia Britannica, 19 May. 2022, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Carolus-Linnaeus
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- “Mark Catesby (1683 – 1749).” Catesby Commemorative Trust. 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20130906122250/http://www.catesbytrust.org/mark-catesby/
- Smith-Rogers, Sheryl. “Maiden of the Monarchs.” TEXAS PARKS & WILDLIFE. March 2016. https://monarchjointventure.org/images/uploads/documents/legacy_monarch_catalina_trail_article.pdf
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- Hannibal, Mary Ellen. “How you can help save the monarch butterfly -- and the planet.” TEDTalk. April 28, 2020. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvJTbegktKc
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- “The US Endangered Species Act.” World Wildlife Federation. https://www.worldwildlife.org/pages/the-us-endangered-species-act#:~:text=Passed%20with%20bipartisan%20support%20in,a%20species%20should%20be%20protected.
- Associated Press. “Beloved monarch butterflies are now listed as endangered.” WBEZ Chicago. July 23, 2022. https://www.wbez.org/stories/beloved-monarch-butterflies-are-now-listed-as-endangered/0f3cf69b-8376-42eb-af0a-9e8b8b4ab6b3
- Garland, Mark S., and Andrew K. Davis. “An Examination of Monarch Butterfly (Danaus Plexippus) Autumn Migration in Coastal Virginia.” The American Midland Naturalist, vol. 147, no. 1, 2002, pp. 170–74. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/3083045
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- Catesby, Mark. “A Monarch butterfly, with orchids.” C. 1722-6. Royal Collection Trust. https://www.rct.uk/collection/926050/a-monarch-butterfly-with-orchids
- Daly, Natasha. “Monarch butterflies are now an endangered species.” July 21, 2022. National Geographic. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/monarch-butterflies-are-now-an-endangered-species
- Walker, A., Oberhauser, K.S., Pelton, E.M., Pleasants, J.M. & Thogmartin, W.E. 2022. Danaus plexippus ssp. plexippus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2022: e.T194052138A200522253. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-1.RLTS.T194052138A200522253.en
- Price, Michael. “Monarch miscalculation: Has a scientific error about the butterflies persisted for more than 40 years?” Science. Feb. 24, 2007. https://www.science.org/content/article/monarch-miscalculation-has-scientific-error-about-butterflies-persisted-more-40-years
- Jiang, Kevin. “Study sheds light on evolutionary origins and the genes central to migration.” UChicago News. Oct. 6, 2014. https://news.uchicago.edu/story/genetic-secrets-monarch-butterfly-revealed
- Borkin, Susan Sullivan. “Notes on Shifting Distribution Patterns and Survival of Immature Danaus Plexippus (Lepidoptera: Danaidae) on the Food Plant Asclepias Syriaca.” The Great Lakes Entymologist. Vol. 15, No. 3. Fall 1982. https://scholar.valpo.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1437&context=tgle
- Cudmore, Rebecca. “SNAPSHOT: Monarchs with big, bright wings arrive in Mexico first.” ScienceLine. June 16, 2014. https://scienceline.org/2014/06/monarch-migration/
- Brower, Lincoln P. “UNDERSTANDING AND MISUNDERSTANDING THE MIGRAnON OF THE MONARCH BUTTERFLY (NYMPHALIDAE) IN NORTH AMERICA: 1857-1995.” Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society. Vol. 49, No. 4, 1995. https://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/pollinators/Monarch_Butterfly/documents/Understanding_Monarch_Migration1995-Brower.pdf
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