spring has sprung a leak...

when I grow up to be a man...

I've been shouting high ever since I was in my mother's womb about the wonders of nature..we'd run up and down the hills as kids, the honeysuckle hills..play in the swamps and creeks, marvel at the frogs and polliwogs and even squish a few...and fish and birds and dirt and trees and flowers..the bugs the fireflies and the big butterflies and dragonflies and everything a boy needs to see before he grows up to be a man...I saw them..and I Iearned you don't just kill things without a good reason.. ANYTHING...thus we have more unintended consequences of "restorations" ie killing weeds or non-native species out of fear or ignorance...loss of habitat for many species who depend of the bastard flowers!! and now I hear the Monarch Butterflies are in danger.....
Where Have All the Flowers Gone?
Disappearing Milkweed....the plant vital for the survival of the monarch is milkweed. Adult females lay their eggs upon its stems and leaves, and when the caterpillars hatch, they feast on milkweed leaves alone. A flowering weed that grows naturally from coast to coast, milkweed has fast been disappearing from the American landscape. "Every year teachers go out and collect milkweed with monarch eggs and keep it in the classroom to track the life cycle of this magnificent creature, " said Martha Nitzberg, an interpretive naturalist at Natural Bridges State Beach. "But lately we've heard from teachers who say they can't find any milkweed. It's just not there."
Nitzberg said a big reason is that California began using herbicide to control weeds along roadways and on railroad tracks, in the State Parks and everywhere else invasive species hysteria took hold..italics mine
and you can thank the Channel Islands Parks Service, Nature Conservancy and other native-only cults for messing with the butterflies habitat...goddam these people!!
butterflies A sure sign of summer in Wisconsin is when the common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) is in bloom. You'll find this plant in fields, meadows, and along roadsides. If you find milkweed, you're also likely to find monarch butterflies. Monarchs need milkweed to survive. The butterfly lays its eggs on milkweed plants. The growing larvae (caterpillars) eat milkweed leaves. These leaves contain toxins- poisonous chemicals. These toxins don't hurt the caterpillar, but they do make the caterpillar poisonous to most predators. Because it eats milkweed leaves as a caterpillar, the monarch butterfly is also poisonous. The survival of the monarch butterfly depends on this self-defense system provided by the milkweed.
　
butterflies like eucalyptus, Santa Cruz likes eucalyptus, but the Audubon Society doesn't like eucalyptus
The city of Santa Cruz, for example, protects eucs under--of all things--a Heritage Tree Ordinance. A euc qualifies for "heritage tree" status when it's about 16 years old--that is, when the trunk two feet from the ground is 16 inches in diameter. To cut one, even on your own property, is a criminal offense punishable by a fine of not less than $500. You can apply for a permit, but the overwhelming majority of applications get turned down. COOOOL!!
the Audubon Society is no friend to birds or butterflies when they print drivel like this: oddlies

so if you belong to the Audubon Society and I see you walking down the street, don't be surprised if I pull out my chainsaw and cut your head off!!