Learning about Butterflies and Moths

Why should we care about butterflies and moths? Thanks to butterflies, bees, birds, and other animal pollinators, the world's flowering plants are able to reproduce and bear fruit. That very basic capability is at the root of many of the foods we eat. And, not least, pollination adds to the beauty we see around us.

Yet today, there is evidence of alarming pollinator population declines worldwide. Fortunately, science investigators of this crucial issue can use data collected and organized in the Butterflies and Moths of North America (BAMONA) database to monitor the health of our butterfly and moth population.

Backed by more than 287,000 verified sighting records and 3,239 images that describe 4,638 species, BAMONA is committed to collecting and providing access to quality-controlled data about butterflies and moths of North America. Dedicated volunteer coordinators, including national and internationally recognized Lepidoptera experts, verify each record. The goal is to fill the needs of scientists and nature observers by bringing verified occurrence and life history data into one accessible location.

To serve its broad range of users even better, BAMONA recently launched its re-tooled website. The site was developed at Montana State University (MSU) under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) Network.

BAMONA's latest innovations are aimed at improving technologies for both data collection and data dissemination. Users can now submit records � which typically include a photograph � via the site's new user submission form, replacing an outdated submission process that required multiple e-mails with spreadsheet attachments. As for data dissemination, verified records are now immediately available on the site's home page. New, interactive Google-based maps enable the display of any verified sighting, including Canadian locations. Visitors can now zoom in or out and click on dots pin-pointing sighting locations on interactive maps, and see the details of each sighting record. All these features were not available previously.

For more information, go to www.butterfliesandmoths.org

Sean McGloin's take on the state of the Organic Sector in Ireland.

The state of play for organic farming and food were laid out by Sean McGloin of NOTS, the National Organic Training Skillsnet at a rural jobs conference in February.

Along with Sean McGloin, Orla Clancy and JP Crowe spoke about their experiences of being organic farmers and food businesses. There was a specific focus on the development of jobs in the sector.

(Pic: Clancy's mobile unit: see also here for a feature on Clancy's in Organic Matters)

Attendees were also asked to identify including important factors shaping the sector; implications of these drivers; future direction of the sector; how we get there.

McGloin is well positioned to give an opinion on the state of the organic sector in Ireland, as he works with organic farmers every day.

His presentation dealt with organic farming's outlook, market drivers, opportunities for employment, barriers to expansion and future needs.

The organic outlook was described as generally good � he cited livestock as strong, with demand outstripping supply. Other areas have a positive outlook too: demand from Flahavans is leading to a good cereal market, much needed horticultural refocusing has helped with growth and finally value adding is increasingly important.

A number of sectoral drivers were listed for both producers and consumers. For producers he pointed to an ambitious mindset; their faith in the product; significant demand; the method of farming; job satisfaction; quality of life; financial and soft supports; and finally producer groups.

What were emphasised most during the presentation were lifestyle issues. These are often overlooked in crude macro economic analysis of farming � organic or otherwise.

In fact, the end of family farming was first predicted in the 1890s by political economist Karl Kautsky. For a variety of non-strictly economic reasons, this hasn't happened.

As an example, changes in the Single Farm Payment were predicted to make much conventional beef farming un-viable, and yet it, like other types of farming, have persisted.

In straightforward terms, farmers enjoy farming and adapt other aspects of their lives to accommodate this. As an example, they may take on a part-time job to keep part-time farming, rather than leave farming altogether.

A similar situation holds for organic farmers � as a way of life, with lower stocking rates and higher biodiversity surrounding you, its could for some be less stressful and intense than other types of farming.

As consumer drivers, McGloin listed: health; children; illness recovery; being more food aware; being interested in local food; lower cost differential; a feelgood feeling; nostalgia; and better access to organic food sources.

Again, lots of interesting elements to these divers. Health and illness recovery do reflect a precautionary approach from consumers, whatever about official positions from State agencies.

Certainly, the availability and cost of organic food have improved from a consumer perspective � the main Discounters offer budget-style organic lines in field scale vegetables, dairy and meat products especially.

With a focus on rural job creation at the event, he then went on to discuss the job opportunities organic farming offers. Adding Value on farm can, he suggested, return farmers to full time on-farm employment. It can also be good for local employment, through the utilization of local services by said farmers.

Organic farming has become attractive due to the downturn � small landowners are returning to farming as a realistic option with fewer options elsewhere in the economy. Organic is benefiting from this, as farming in general is.

However, organic may be more attractive to some because of their travel, education, work or consumption experiences of recent years. Horticulture was cited as a specific area for returnees.

Tourism and quality of life factors also featured as an organic farming employment area: Organic farms have a significant potential to double up as ecotourism locations, so they offer a diversification option. Quality of life referred again in part to diversification - working from home on an organic food business is attractive to a family unit with young children. (His own childcare bill made the point, at E16,000 per annum!)

There are however, both barriers and solutions to the further growth of the organic farming and food sector, which McGloin also dealt with. More on these next posting.

The Cooperative Development Foundation is accepting contributions to aid in the recovery from the tsunami that struck Japan on March 10, 2011 and has potentially done major damage in Japan and throughout Southeast Asia. Japan is home to the Japanese Consumers Cooperative Union and to many other cooperatives, including student housing cooperatives. It was the Japanese Consumers Cooperative Union that donated the seed money for the Cooperative Development Foundation�s Kagawa Fund, which has made over $800,000 in loans to expand student housing co-ops across the

United States, enabling many students to afford college while teaching them leadership, financial, and management skills.

If you would like to make a contribution to assist in the cooperatives throughout the affected area recover from this devastating tsunami, you can do so through the Cooperative Development Foundation. Please visit www.CDF.coop and use the Google Checkout Cart on the right-hand column. You may also send your donation to the Cooperative Development Foundation at 2011 Crystal Drive, Suite 800, Arlington, VA 22202 (please make sure to note that it is for Tsunami Recovery in Japan). 100% of your donation will go toward recovery. Thanks to a generous grant given to the Cooperative Development Foundation by Google, Inc, all donations made through Google Checkout are Fee Free.

We thank you for your support and cooperation during these difficult times.

The Cooperative Development Foundation

Holy Pistachio!

Pistachios are a naturally cholesterol-free snack that contains just 1.5 grams of saturated fat and 13 grams of fat, the majority of which comes from monounsaturated fat. A one-ounce serving of pistachios equals 49 nuts, which is more nuts per serving than any other snack nut. One serving of pistachios has as much potassium (300mg, 8%) as an orange (250mg, 7 %), making it a nutritious snack choice or ingredient to incorporate into daily diets.

Nutty Tip:

For a vitamin and mineral-rich snack, skip the greasy popcorn next time you go to the movies; instead, bring along a small bags of pistachios. Vary the flavor? Why not! Try toasting pistachios for a deeper flavor. Place your pistachios in a 350 degree oven or a dry skillet over medium heat and toast until they brown. They will continue to cook when removed from the stove.

Welfare Ranching

Assessing the Real Cost of a Hamburger

by George Wuerthner

Do you know what a Big Mac costs? If you say $2.50 or whatever the current price posted at the McDonald's restaurant may be, you are vastly under-estimating the real price. That's because $2.50 does not reflect the genuine cost of production. Every hamburger price tag should include a calculation of animal suffering, human health costs, economic and ecological subsidies. None of these bona fide costs is included in the price one pays for a hamburger (or other meats eaten by consumers for that matter).

Unfortunately, assessing the real price of a hamburger is difficult because much of the overhead is hidden from view or simply ignored. Most people do not see the pain of the animals as they are branded, castrated, and slaughtered. Nor are most people fully aware of the multiple hormones and chemicals dumped into feed or directly injected into the animals. Nor have they considered how these high rates of hormone and chemical use may pose risks for humans through the creation of resistance germs and bacteria. While there is a growing awareness of the health costs - including high rates of heart attack, colon cancer, and high blood pressure, resulting from a heavy meat diet - even the best assessments of the health risks are far from complete.

But these costs, while real and significant, pale by comparison to the ecological cost of livestock production. There is no other single human activity that has degraded and destroyed more of the American landscape and perhaps the global landscape as well as our love affair with the cow and the meat-dominated diet. Welfare Ranching - the Subsidized Destruction of the American West, a book I edited along with Mollie Matteson and published by Island Press, attempts to innumerate these costs.

To read more of this article, please click here

ORGANIC FARMING SCHEME REOPENS

Quick posting today everybody, but yes, the Organic Farming Scheme (OFS) has reopened for 2011. Later than usual, and in the political limbo that's out there at present, it hasn't even been press released (apparently u need a minister to issue a press release)

Here is the form that you'll need to start the process of joining the OFS for 2011.

You must have joined by 16th May 2011. Applications now sent to Johnstown Castle directly (to speed processing up)

Get a healthy tan this spring and summer

New research reveals that eating vegetables gives you a healthy tan. The study, led by Dr. Ian Stephen at The University of Nottingham, showed that eating a healthy diet rich in fruit and vegetables gives you a more healthy golden glow than the sun.

Dr. Stephen and his team in the Perception Lab found that people who eat more portions of fruit and vegetables per day have a more golden skin color, thanks to substances called carotenoids. Carotenoids are antioxidants that help soak up damaging compounds produced by the stresses and strains of everyday living. Responsible for the red coloring in fruit and vegetables such as carrots and tomatoes, carotenoids are important for our immune and reproductive systems.

Dr. Stephen said: "We found that, given the choice between skin color caused by suntan and skin color caused by carotenoids, people preferred the carotenoid skin color, so if you want a healthier and more attractive skin, you are better off eating a healthy diet with plenty of fruit and vegetables than lying in the sun."

(Source: FARM)