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feral-babe · 6 months

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The Five of Shells resonates with themes of loss, grief, regret, and the emotional turmoil that accompanies facing setbacks and disappointments. This card serves as a wise teacher, encouraging us to confront our sorrow, acknowledge our losses, and navigate a path forward with resilience and acceptance. It stands as a poignant reminder that, in the face of adversity, there remains hope and opportunity to transform our circumstances. The recently extinct Xerces blue butterfly, which once graced the San Francisco Peninsula, left a tragic narrative of loss that reverberated through the natural world. This card prompts us to recognize the grief that follows such losses and encourages us to shift our focus from dwelling on what is lost to cherishing what remains.

The tale of the Xerces blue serves as a stark and powerful reminder of the real-world consequences of neglect. It emphasizes that the process of healing, both for our environment and ourselves, can only begin when we confront our losses and, crucially, when we commit to learning from past mistakes. It symbolizes the arduous struggle to move beyond sorrow and find hope amidst despair, to recognize the potential for renewal even in the face of profound loss. It gently nudges us to seek support in times of adversity, reminding us that we need not navigate the terrain of loss in isolation. Instead, it encourages us to grieve for what is gone and channel that grief into meaningful action.

In essence, this card is a mirror reflecting the universal human experience of confronting grief and loss. It provides a roadmap for finding hope amid despair and healing in the face of adversity, stressing that even in the most challenging moments, we are not alone. The Five of Shells imparts a profound lesson: acknowledging our sorrows is the first step on the path to healing and transformative change.

Prints available on Redbubble and Inprnt

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#artists on tumblr #illustration #tara jillian art #insects #nature #bugs #redbubbleartist #bug tarot #tarot cards #tarot art #invertebrates #butterflies #xerces blue #xerces society #invertebrate conservation #conservation #big bug gospel #extinct animals

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fandomtrumpshate · 1 year

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FTH 2023 Supported Organization: Xerces Society

Insect species are threatened with habitat destruction around the globe, and protected natural areas fail to safeguard 75% of insect species. Insects are absolutely crucial to life on Earth, maintaining soil structure and fertility, serving as pollinators to assist plant reproduction, and as food sources for birds and many other animals. Since 2019, scientists have been extremely concerned with the decline of global insect populations, which could spell disaster for humanity and the world.

The Xerces Society is a science-based conservation organization, working with diverse partners that include scientists, land managers, educators, policymakers, farmers, and communities. By utilizing applied research, engaging in advocacy, providing educational resources, addressing policy implications, and building community, they endeavor to make meaningful long-term conservation a reality.

For over 50 years, theyt have protected endangered species and their habitats, produced ground-breaking publications, trained thousands of farmers and land managers to conserve habitat, and raised awareness about the importance and plights of invertebrates in forests, prairies, deserts, and oceans. Their key program areas are pollinator conservation, endangered species conservation, and reducing pesticide use and impacts.

You can support the Xerces Society as a creator in the 2023 FTH auction (or as a bidder, when the time comes to donate for the auctions you’ve won.)

Signups are open!

#fth 2023 #fanworks charity auction #supported organization #xerces society

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turtlesandfrogs · 11 months

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If you're in the U.S. and want to support local plants and pollinators, I hope you've heard of the Xerces Society. Weird name, but super cool resource for gardening for insect pollinators (and they work for other invertebrate species, too)

They've got regional native plant lists:

They've also got super helpful things in their resources section, including Washington's plan for helping bumble bees:

Another really cool resource is the National Wildlife Federation's list of key stone plant species by ecoregion:

#native plants #gardening for pollinators #save the bees #gardening

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onenicebugperday · 8 months

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The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, one of my favorite non-profits, is doing a fundraiser and selling shirts! You can pre-order one now and they ship in early October. Already ordered mine :)

Order here to support their excellent cause!

If you don’t want a shirt, you can still donate to Xerces here.

There’s only one design, but here are a few of the different shirt options:

#fundraiser #nonprofit #insects #bugs #conservation #nature #bugblr

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rebeccathenaturalist · 2 months

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I remember as a kid in the 80s that these iconic large butterflies were everywhere in our garden, along with swallowtails of several species. It's been so disheartening to see an insect that was so plentiful be on the brink of extinction just a few decades later.

Individually we can only do so much about the effects of anthropogenic climate change, but here are a few things you can do to help monarch butterflies if you're in their range:

--No pesticides! These chemicals don't discriminate, and will harm all sorts of insects, not just the intended targets. In fact, the fewer yard chemicals you use, the better for your local ecosystem.

--Plant milkweed that is native to your area; even a few plants in pots count! Live Monarch (US), Monarch Watch (US), and Little Wings (Canada) all have free native milkweed seeds on a limited basis--and they appreciate donations of funds to help pay for more, too. Be aware that a lot of the milkweed on the general market consists of non-native tropical species that host parasites and also bloom late enough that they may cause monarchs to stop migrating south to overwintering grounds.

--Put out a watering station consisting of a shallow dish with a layer of rocks on the bottom and just enough water to not quite cover them so the butterflies can land and safely drink water without falling in.

--Support organizations like the ones mentioned above, and the Xerces Society of Invertebrate Conservation, which all help to protect monarch butterflies and other invertebrates.

#monarch butterflies #Danaus plexippus #butterflies #insects #invertebrates #invertblr #arthropods #endangered species #North America #extinction #environment #environmentalism #conservation #ecology

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cypherdecypher · 1 year

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Animal of the Day!

Mysterious Lantern Firefly (Photuris mysticalampas)

(Photo from Xerces Society)

Conservation Status- Endangered

Habitat- Delaware; Maryland

Size (Weight/Length)- 9 cm

Diet- Nectar

Cool Facts- Being one of the more recent firefly species discovered, scientists still have a lot to learn about the mysterious lantern firefly. These fireflies are only found in wetlands on the border of Delaware and Maryland. During peak mating season, thousands of these tiny insects gather and the males take to the sky. Once one male begins lighting up, all the others follow. The males match their illuminations until waves of light sweep across the forest floor. Only once the males are perfectly in sync do the female mysterious lantern fireflies light their own lights to show off their presence to possible mates. Due to pollution and changes in summer storms, the mysterious lantern firefly is a highly threatened species.

Rating- 12/10 (Nature’s natural disco floor.)

#Animal of the day #Animals #Insects #Firefly #Sunday #May 14 #Mysterious lantern firefly #biology #science #conservation #the more you know #cw: insects

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letoscrawls · 10 months

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I hate you terminal i hate you ubuntu i hate you github i hate you xerces i hate you xml i hate you java i hate technology i pray every day for the downfall of modern society

#daily i hate my degree post

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gardening-is-punk · 3 months

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Lunarpunk gardens

Okay, I'll admit I'm not on top of the whole aesthetics of the various -punk genres, but looks imo should be considered after function and ethics. SO...

I was inspired by this post and got to thinking about what a Lunarpunk garden would mean on my site.

I decided the most important part of the post was "Let me propose lunarpunk being more than just witchy aesthetics. It should be about reducing light pollution, protecting all endangered species including the ugly ones, and most of all seeing darkness as a coexisting counterpart and not something to conquer." So, that's three ideas that I can work with.

reducing light pollution: Working through this idea the same way I would evaluating an established garden in terms of layers and scale of objects in the space, at a site-level the only exterior lights are those at the front and back door. Various flying insects are very attracted to the back light, which is a normal incandescent bulb, and less are attracted to the front ones, which are green. In both cases, we never leave them on all night, but working off what several websites say about bulb color and warmth, I can swap all the bulbs for a warmer-tone LED bulbs and that would cause less issue when they are on at night. Scaling up, I'm not sure what I can do about the huge streetlight on our road, which has the most hideous white-light. Before I DO anything, I probably should dig into the city's files, since I know the bulbs were changed into those LEDs a few years ago, and maybe there was some thought put into that decision.

protecting all endangered species including the ugly ones: Given I'm looking at Lunarpunk, an obvious connection here was moths, the 'ugly' relatives of butterflies. Personally, I love moths and understand their greater ecological role compared to butterflies from a video presentation I watched a few months ago (I'll post that later). Focusing in on the "endangered" aspect, I used Xerces Society's 'Species Profile' tool to look at my state and see what moths are endangered in my area. (Side-note: I also looked at the other categories, like Bees, Beetles, etc. and nothing was specifically noted for my area, so I'm putting those categories on the backburner for ideas rn.) I identified three species of moth as endangered for my area: Diana Fritillary, Dukes' Skipper, and Early Hairstreak. The idea to then ID what plants the eggs and larvae need as host plants, what adults need for sustenance, and what mirco-climates I can make to support their life cycles.

Diana Fritillary (Speyeria diana) "As a forest-dependent species, threats to the Diana fritillary come mainly from forest management: logging operations and pest control... There is one flight from June to September. Males emerge before females and patrol within the forest. Females lay eggs later in the flight period, mainly August, walking along the ground and attaching eggs singly to twigs and dead leaves. As with other Speyeria species, the caterpillars hatch and hibernate without feeding. They emerge in spring to feed on the leaves and flowers of various species of violets. Adults feed on nectar from a variety of plants, including milkweeds (Asclepias sp.), ironweed (Vernonia sp.), and red clover (Trifolium pratense). Males will also drink fluids from dung...Habitats for the Diana fritillary are the edges and openings in moist, rich mountain forests. They will also use pastures, shrublands, and fields for nectaring but will only breed if there is a suitable forest margin. Larval hostplants are various species of violets (Viola sp.)" (quotes from Xerces Society).

So, this species wants a forest edge, which my neighborhood is certainly not; however, I have a decent handful of trees which I mulch using unprocessed leaf litter and stems over the winter, and this provides a decent base for supporting any number of species in my site. I also have lots of self-sown viola in the lawn and beds, which I greatly enjoy not only for their tiny and delicate looking flowers, but also the fulsome heart-shaped leaves the rest of the summer and autumn. I have two Swamp Milkweeds planted, and I'll consider more species as space and needs arise. So far, off to a good start.

Dukes' Skipper (Euphyes dukesi) "It can be found in a variety of moist habitats with long grass, such as marshes or ditches, but the primary habitat is patches of sedge—its main larval host plant—in forested swamps. Dukes’ skipper deserves conservation efforts wherever it is found. Its forested wetland habitat should be protected from drainage, logging, and spraying...In the mid-south, there are two between June and September... Adults visit open wetlands to drink nectar from flowers such as pickerelweed (Pontederia sp.), sneezeweed (Helenium sp.), hibiscus (Hibiscus sp.), and blue mistflower (Conoclinium sp.)...Dukes’ skipper can be found in a variety of moist habitats with long grass, such as marshes or ditches, but the primary habitat is sedge patches in forested swamps. Larval hostplants are sedges, including hairy sedge (Carex lacustris) and shoreline sedge (Carex hyalinolepis)" (Xerces Society).

Again, not a habitat that is immediate to my site. The good news is that I'm already starting several Swamp Hibiscus from seed this year for various spots, and I've been looking more into sedges for a couple wet spots. In particular, I want to run an open pipe from the AC drip into a spot where I removed a non-native 'hibiscus' this winter after some damage. I could feasibly do a few sedges around the Swamp Hibiscus. I doubt I would get a breeding population on my own, but if it becomes an effective use of the water, this might be a technique that I can demonstrate to others in the neighborhood - and again, it's a good habit for several species besides the Skipper.

Early Hairstreak (Erora laeta) "The habitat is mature deciduous and mixed woods containing its host plants, American beech and beaked hazelnut. As a forest-dependent species, both logging activities and pest control spraying are possible threats...There are usually one flight (May – mid-June) in the north and two flights (mid-April – mid-May and late- June – July) in the east. Rarely, a partial third flight (late-August – early-September) in the southern Appalachians. Males perch in treetops on ridges and hilltops to watch for females. Adults nectar on fleabane (Erigeron sp.), oxeye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare), and steeplebush (Spiraea tomentosa) Early Hairstreaks spend a considerable part of their life in the canopy. Some observers note that adults visit moist ground in the morning (for example, along dirt roads) before returning to the canopy in the afternoon. Eggs are laid singly on the hostplant fruit. Caterpillars feed on nuts, initially the husk in early instars and later boring inside. Most of the year is spent as pupae, probably in the leaf litter" (Xerces Society).

I'm realizing now that the reason these three species are threatened so much is that their habitat is decidedly not urban or adaptable to the swathes of monocultures that have swallowed my area. I don't have any Beech or Hazel nut yet, but I do have some beechnuts sown in a pot, that I picked off the path in a local park. If those germinate, I can probably keep some in pots and maybe get one in the ground depending on the circumstances this summer. I don't have any of the nectar plants, except the fleabane which randomly pops as a volunteer ( a "weed" to those more judgmental about pioneer-recovery species), and I can look into Steeplebush seeds, since they do look gorgeous and I can probably sell the more reluctant in my household on that factor.

seeing darkness as a coexisting counterpart and not something to conquer

This one is a bit tougher to work with outside of my own praxis, specifically in convincing others visually through my site. Honestly, I think the best way to suggest this visually is in using plants that are either dark foliaged (I have a ninebark and planning on some corn that fit this bill) or silver foliaged/white flowering ( a garden sage I have in a pot and the sown buttonbush, maybe). In daytime, I'm hoping to focus a lot on bright masses of color paired with bright hardscape, like the existing white accents and planned turquoise painted pots. The dark foliage are native plants; the ninebark is a replacement for the awful barberries I spent hours hacking out, and the corn is "Flor de Rio" a burgundy-colored popcorn variety. Those alone I hope are visually different enough to catch people's interest, but I know a lot of people take walks in my neighborhood in the evening, at dusk or after dark. The white flowers and silver foliage might actually benefit from the harsh streetlight, here, shining out from the muted greens and darker foliage.

The easiest way to try and further this point is naturally to talk to people about the idea, but I think this visual communication/demonstration could serve as the backbone of those potential conversations.

further thoughts

Lunarpunk isn't a genre I've really worked with before, but I hope this interpretation of the idea (a dark/hidden counterpart to the more well known Solarpunk ethos) can meaningfully help people reconsider their biases about visibility and usefulness, and of course provide support to various critters in the area.

#lunarpunk #garden #gardening #moths #gardening for moths #light pollution

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bluemichikosan · 1 year

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Original publishing date, February 23, 2023

[Washington has just become the first state in the United States to develop a statewide strategy to conserve bumble bees. Research has shown significant declines in native pollinators globally, and unfortunately bumble bees are no exception. In response to these declines, partners convened in Washington state to address the issue head-on, creating a strategy led by the Xerces Society in partnership with the US Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, US Fish and Wildlife Service, and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.]

#environmental science #bees #conservation #the usa

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pnwnativeplants · 1 month

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"There are many different kinds of animals that we call natural enemies, all of which hunt the bugs that might harm your plants. Many might already be familiar faces, such as lady beetles, spiders, lacewings, and dragonflies. These hunters catch their prey by chasing it down or waiting in ambush."

#pnw native plants #native plants #ecology #xerces society

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brightgnosis · 3 months

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I was following this lady on Instagram who makes educational videos about gardening in Oklahoma. In one of her recent videos, though, she was talking about how we should start cutting our stems back now because "the bugs are already out" and if she doesn't do it now, "she'll never get ahead of the weeds". And of course I made the classic mistake and said something.

Specifically, I said we shouldn't. That places like the Xerces Society are right about leaving stems and leaf litter alone as long as possible- and that in Oklahoma specifically, you should leave it alone until mid to late April. Especially since Oklahoma is famous for its completely random cold snaps (a main reason we have an impossible time growing Stone Fruit crops especially), and even getting random snow all the way up through Easter; that many of the soft cocooned bugs that hide in stems and in leaf litter genuinely will not come out until after that threat of frost has passed- and it will not be passed for us until around May.

She got snippy with me about it, even though I wasn't rude (social media "educators" of any stripe, I swear 🙄); made a big deal about her being a member of the Xerces Society, herself, and how she "said nothing about leaf litter" (which I never said she did, the two just go in tandem typically). Proceeded to insist that "we're having an early spring" this year because it's warm right now, and that "all the bugs are absolutely already out" 🤦‍♀️ And then insisted further that "the video was about doing what's best for your own garden- and this is what's best for [hers]"- the implication being that I needed to "butt out", essentially (despite the fact she's literally positioned herself as a public educator and is giving out blatantly incorrect information about our current weather and misleading others about our common / average weather patterns).

I get being impatient to get started on the year's tasks (I'm impatient as all hell right now; I'm dying without my plants, man). But she's truly setting herself up for a big surprise when another cold snap or cold front comes though and wipes out her work like they do nearly every year; something which someone who claims to be so "educated" on gardening, and who runs an "educational" account about that topic for this specific state, should honestly know- especially in their 60's (I'd guess by her appearance).

But oh well. That's not my problem; to each their own ignorance- and to me, a block button.

«Oklahoma - Region 2» ⬩ «Grow Zone 7a» ⬩ «Heat Zone 8»

#Personal #2024 #My Garden #Garden 2024 #Gardening #Gardeners On Tumblr #Gardeners Of Tumblr #Gardenblr #Plantblr #Disabled Gardener #Disabled Gardening #Green Witch #Green Witchcraft #Witchy Gardening #Oklahoma

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