Audiobook8 hours
Monarchs and Milkweed: A Migrating Butterfly, a Poisonous Plant, and Their Remarkable Story of Coevolution
Written by Anurag Agrawal
Narrated by Stephen R. Thorne
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
5/5
()
About this audiobook
Monarch 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.
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.
Related to Monarchs and Milkweed
Related audiobooks
Life Everlasting: The Animal Way of Death Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Hummingbirds' Gift: Wonder, Beauty, and Renewal on Wings Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Gods, Wasps and Stranglers: The Secret History and Redemptive Future of Fig Trees Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Our Native Bees: North America's Endangered Pollinators and the Fight to Save Them Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lives of Bees: The Untold Story of the Honey Bee in the Wild Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Homing Instinct: Meaning and Mystery in Animal Migration Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Wonder of Birds: What They Tell Us About Ourselves, the World, and a Better Future Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Hidden Lives of Owls: The Science and Spirit of Nature's Most Elusive Birds Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Endless Forms: The Secret World of Wasps Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Song of the Dodo: Island Biogeography in an Age of Extinctions Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wild Souls: Freedom and Flourishing in the Non-Human World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tenacious Beasts: Wildlife Recoveries That Change How We Think about Animals Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5The Journeys of Trees: A Story about Forests, People, and the Future Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Owls of the Eastern Ice: A Quest to Find and Save the World's Largest Owl Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Silent Earth: Averting the Insect Apocalypse Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Honeybee Democracy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Protecting Pollinators: How to Save the Creatures that Feed Our World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Insect Crisis: The Fall of the Tiny Empires That Run the World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Birds and Us: A 12,000-Year History from Cave Art to Conservation Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Wing and a Prayer: The Race to Save Our Vanishing Birds Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nature Underfoot: Living with Beetles, Crabgrass, Fruit Flies, and Other Tiny Life Around Us Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5In the Company of Crows and Ravens Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Last Butterflies: A Scientist's Quest to Save a Rare and Vanishing Creature Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Superlative: The Biology of Extremes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Hidden World: How Insects Sustain Life on Earth Today and Will Shape Our Lives Tomorrow Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Enemy Invaders Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLife on Earth Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Biology For You
Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5All That Remains: A Renowned Forensic Scientist on Death, Mortality, and Solving Crimes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Radiolab: Journey Through The Human Body Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Grieving Brain: The Surprising Science of How We Learn from Love and Loss Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lifespan: Why We Age—and Why We Don't Have To Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Neuroscientist Who Lost Her Mind: My Tale of Madness and Recovery Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Second Nature: A Gardener's Education Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The End of Gender: Debunking the Myths about Sex and Identity in Our Society Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Longevity Paradox: How to Die Young at a Ripe Old Age Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Genius Foods: Become Smarter, Happier, and More Productive While Protecting Your Brain for Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Grunt: The Curious Science of Humans at War Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How the Mind Works Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Change Your Brain, Change Your Life (Before 25): Change Your Developing Mind for Real-World Success Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Inner Life of Animals: Love, Grief, and Compassion: Surprising Observations of a Hidden World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Uncertain Sea: Fear is everywhere. Embrace it. Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Cosmic Serpent: DNA and the Origins of Knowledge Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Jaws: The Story of a Hidden Epidemic Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Autistic Brain: Thinking Across the Spectrum Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Buddha's Brain: The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love & Wisdom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related categories
Reviews for Monarchs and Milkweed
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
5/5
3 ratings0 reviews