03637nam 22005175 450 991016495710332120230810001743.010.1515/9781400884766(CKB)3710000001024784(MiAaPQ)EBC4821070(DE-B1597)479654(OCoLC)966375978(OCoLC)984656903(DE-B1597)9781400884766(EXLCZ)99371000000102478420190523d2017 fg engurcnu||||||||rdacontentrdamediardacarrierMonarchs and Milkweed A Migrating Butterfly, a Poisonous Plant, and Their Remarkable Story of Coevolution /Anurag AgrawalPrinceton, NJ :Princeton University Press,[2017]©20171 online resource (297 pages) color illustrations, photographsIncludes index.0-691-16635-8 1-4008-8476-4 Frontmatter --Contents --List of Illustrations --1. Welcome to the Monarchy --2. The Arms Race --3. The Chemistry of Medicine and Poison --4. Waiting, Mating, and Migrating --5. Hatching and Defending --6. Saving Up to Raise a Family --7. The Milkweed Village --8. The Autumn Migration --9. Long Live the Monarchy! --Acknowledgments --Notes --Image Credits --IndexThe fascinating and complex evolutionary relationship of the monarch butterfly and the milkweed plantMonarch butterflies are one of nature's most recognizable creatures, known for their bright colors and epic annual migration from the United States and Canada to Mexico. Yet there is much more to the monarch than its distinctive presence and mythic journeying. In Monarchs and Milkweed, Anurag Agrawal presents a vivid investigation into how the monarch butterfly has evolved closely alongside the milkweed-a toxic plant named for the sticky white substance emitted when its leaves are damaged-and how this inextricable and intimate relationship has been like an arms race over the millennia, a battle of exploitation and defense between two fascinating species.The monarch life cycle begins each spring when it deposits eggs on milkweed leaves. But this dependency of monarchs on milkweeds as food is not reciprocated, and milkweeds do all they can to poison or thwart the young monarchs. Agrawal delves into major scientific discoveries, including his own pioneering research, and traces how plant poisons have not only shaped monarch-milkweed interactions but have also been culturally important for centuries. Agrawal presents current ideas regarding the recent decline in monarch populations, including habitat destruction, increased winter storms, and lack of milkweed-the last one a theory that the author rejects. He evaluates the current sustainability of monarchs and reveals a novel explanation for their plummeting numbers.Lavishly illustrated with more than eighty color photos and images, Monarchs and Milkweed takes readers on an unforgettable exploration of one of nature's most important and sophisticated evolutionary relationships.Monarch butterflyMilkweed butterfliesMilkweedsCoevolutionMonarch butterfly.Milkweed butterflies.Milkweeds.Coevolution.595.78/9Agrawal Anurag81433DE-B1597DE-B1597BOOK9910164957103321Monarchs and Milkweed2430074UNINA