The first tagged monarch butterfly to be recovered in California this season was found on Sept. 7, a sure sign that the annual monarch migration from the north to overwintering spots along the coast was underway. As the butterflies hopefully make their way to the Pacific Grove Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary for the season beginning in October, they will find at least one tree used last year for shelter is gone, in what could be considered a symbol of discord between volunteers who care for the sanctuary and city officials.
The pine, felled recently ahead of the season, was described as dead by a city arborist and longtime sanctuary consultant Stuart Weiss of Creekside Science. Weiss says the tree had no foliage and was in danger of falling and taking out surrounding healthy trees. “It’s better to bring them down in a controlled way rather than let them fall, which is eventually going to happen,” Weiss says.
A group called the Friends of the Monarchs disagrees. “I looked at the stump and it didn’t look like that tree was dead at all,” says Dominick Sinicropi, a retired scientist who volunteers weekly in the sanctuary and serves as the science officer for Friends. He believes the sanctuary needs more trees to provide adequate shelter during storms. “It does not provide an adequate microclimate for the overwintering monarchs,” Sinicropi says.
Also a point of contention is Weiss’ recommendation to remove some eucalyptus trees from a row planted three years ago, on the basis that the trees were planted too close together and removal is necessary to allow those that remain to grow faster. Sinicropi says monarchs were using the trees as shelter last year and should remain. “There’s no need to over-manage the situation,” Sinicropi says. “It’s not for timber production, it’s to produce habitat for monarchs.”
For the last few years Sinicropi and others have communicated to city officials what they believe are inadequacies in Weiss’ annual reports, which the city uses to manage the sanctuary. Friends of the Monarchs President Dixie Layne says they’re frustrated with the city’s process that only seems to take into consideration Weiss’ recommendations. “No one spends more time in that sanctuary than the six volunteers. I don’t understand why we weren’t consulted,” she told the P.G. City Council on Sept. 7. Mayor Bill Peake said Weiss is respected in his field and acknowledged that there were differences of opinion, but was satisfied with Weiss’ recommendations for 2022.
“It’s a very sad state of affairs out there,” Layne says. “The monarchs are iconic to Pacific Grove and we, all of us, are not doing our part to fight their extinction. Pacific Grove can do better.”
Another sanctuary advocate, Jane Haines, urged the city’s Beautification and Natural Resources Commission on Sept. 20 to take all recommendations on sanctuary management, not just Weiss’, to the City Council. The BRNC continued the matter to its next meeting, scheduled for Nov. 15.