2150 North Alvernon Way, Tucson, Arizona 85712 326-9686 www.tucsonbotanical.org

Volunteer and Docent Newsletter

May 2011

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MAY —VOLUNTEER MEETINGS—

Horticultural Therapy Meeting Wednesday, May 4, 10AM Education Building

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HT Outreach Docent Meeting Wednesday, June 1, 10AM Education Building

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Tour Guides/Signature Classes/Proctors

Wednesday, May 4, Noon-1PM Education Classroom

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Southern Arizona Butterfly Association Meeting Tuesday, May 17, 7-9PM Education Classroom

SEABA PRESENTS: BIRDS & BUTTERFLIES OF

SOUTHEAST BRAZIL

Speakers: Hank & Priscilla Brodkin and

BIO-BLITZ: HOW TO GET INVOLVED

Speaker: Anna Iwaki

SEABA meetings are a great place to learn about butterflies and meet interesting people. Refreshments are provided.

VOLUNTEERVOLUNTEERVOLUNTEERVOLUNTEER

APPRECIATION APPRECIATION APPRECIATION APPRECIATION

POTPOTPOTPOT----LUCKLUCKLUCKLUCK

Cinco de Mayo!Cinco de Mayo!Cinco de Mayo!Cinco de Mayo! Thursday, May 5, 11:30 AM

Pavilion

• Latin-inspired dishes would be welcome!! • There will be a Gift Shop Give-Away, courtesy of Jennifer and Amy of the Gift Shop!!

• At the event you’ll be given a number so you can choose your own gift!

NOTICE:NOTICE:NOTICE:NOTICE:

There will only be one newsletter published over the Summer. It will be in July. There will be a “Welcome Back” potluck in September, but no regular volunteer meetings will be held until October, 2011.

A Thank You Note From Juliet. Thanks so much to everyone who so kindly contributed cans, mugs, and cups for the spring HT outreach programs! We couldn’t have done it without you all back there in the wings thinking of us. We’ll be using mugs and cups through May, so if you have any extras, still feel free to cleanse your cabinets for HT. All your contributions are greatly appreciated!

By the time you read this, Butterfly Magic 2010-2011 will have ended. Thank you for making it a great year! Yes, I know it isn’t over. I still have reports to do for the USDA… The permit is submitted for next year. Our next steps regarding that are to wait patiently.

Many thanks to the about 120 of you who have shared your energy and time to make Butterfly Magic a success. Also, I (Elizabeth) would like to thank Eric Eaton for being the Assistant Curator this year. Our progress in developing education resources are much, much further along as a consequence.

On Thursday, May 5, we ship any remaining exhibit-worthy butterflies and chrysalises to the Butterfly Pavilion in Denver where they will live out their lives. If you come to the Volunteer Luncheon that day, you will see a few of us likely looking pretty decrepit, covered in sweat and dust, and, I hope, extremely happy that we have completed the task of rounding up the butterflies. We also hope to have started the process of giving the greenhouse a good clean-up. Following Round-Up, there are three weeks of quarantine. During this time we will look for errant butterflies and caterpillars. We will also be cleaning the lexan, covering exposed screws with plastic covers and doing some caulking, and generally sprucing up the greenhouse for the orchid exhibit.

For the summer, most Tuesday mornings and Twilight Thursday evenings will be used preparing for Butterfly Magic 2010-2011. Tasks include preparing samples for education outreach; revising and then printing and assembling new ID guides for next year; updating database information; proof-reading and critiquing some educational materials for next year; and, closer to our opening, preparing the first big batches of food for the butterflies. Please contact me if you are interested.

Other aims for the summer: update our data-management system for tracking the chrysalises; update the data-management system for scheduling and communicating with volunteers; getting a good system in place for monitoring outreach and other contacts; update training materials. Thanks to a few volunteers who have really taken the lead, we have video clips we can put together in different ways to create educational videos for either teaching about

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or for educating about the biology of the butterflies. I am really excited about this! I think we now have the basic pieces so over the summer we can build the educational resources that will improve our standing as a great little butterfly display!

Butterflies in the Gardens over the Summer Part of our mission is to educate people about our native butterflies and the plants (preferably native) that support them. We also want to keep the passionvine plants on the grounds looking reasonably healthy.

For example: We can raise the Gulf Fritillary caterpillars on purchased diet. We can harvest the caterpillars from the passionvine, sparing the plant and giving us material to use in educational outreach (which doesn’t stop when Butterfly Magic stops).

If you wish to be involved in this, please contact me (Elizabeth) at butterflyexhibit@tucsonbotanical.org. This summer, we are not going to attempt to have a large exhibit on native butterflies.

Our Atlas Moth Experiment This last few weeks we have experimented with putting the Atlas moths back into a cage for overnight. At first we hesitated because we thought they might just bash themselves up in the tiny cage; instead they seem to react by becoming very peaceful (most nights) and they stay in better shape. Since they aren’t expending energy flying around at night, they live longer.

Butterfly Longevity in the Greenhouse In preparing for Round-Up, we surveyed which species are present in the exhibit. To my (Elizabeth’s) surprise on Sunday April 24, I saw a very healthy-looking Sapho Longwing (below, left). Our Chrysalis Exhibit records indicate that the last time a Sapho Longwing was taken to the exhibit was March 7! So, the Sapho was likely a minimum of 47 days old. Not bad. This morning I saw a very good looking Red Rim (right); our records indicate the last Red Rim entered the exhibit on March 8. Again, 47 days.

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Elizabeth Willott, Curator

Butterfly Magic Update

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Butterfly Longevity in the Greenhouse

In preparing for Round-Up, we surveyed which spe-cies are present in the exhibit. To my (Elizabeth’s) surprise on Sunday April 24, I saw a very healthy-looking Sapho Longwing (below). Our Chrysalis Ex-hibit records indicate that the last time a Sapho Long-wing was taken to the exhibit was March 7! So, the Sapho was likely a minimum of 47 days old. Not bad. This morning I saw a very good looking Red Rim (below, right); our records indicate the last Red Rim entered the exhibit on March 8. Again, 47 days.

Butterfly Magic Update (con’t)

Featured Volunteer, Evan Apodaca

E v a n A p o d a c a , v o l un te e r s i nce October 2010, has filmed many different aspects of Butterfly Magic. We now have over 400 short video clips to use in many different ways. This summer we plan to catalog the clips and build short videos capturing the more important processes in the Greenhouse

and the Chrysalis Exhibit. Also, we have footage that captures various different points to cover for educating about butterfly biology. By fall, we hope to have some short videos created to assist us in outreach.

Horticulture Department Update Emily Rockey, Curator

— Hort/Orchids— Spring is in the air! Hopefully you’ve gotten a chance to wander the gardens recently. There are many plants in bloom, and much new growth springing forth after a chilly winter season. Be sure to visit the Iris Garden in its full-force color. Another highlight bloomer in the gardens is the fragrant Star Jasmine. If you don’t know where this magnificent planting is located, here’s a hint: you’ll have to become a kid again…

This year’s ‘Butterfly Magic’ exhibit is coming to a close, and by the month of June the tropical greenhouse will be transformed into an orchid exhibit entitled ‘Mad about Orchids!’ In the exhibit, you will encounter a dazzling display of tropical orchids. You will learn about the most popular orchids for home or greenhouse cultivation, and even a few which can be grown outdoors in Tucson. Many volunteers who lent a hand with the butterfly display have expressed an interest in continuing to work in the tropical greenhouse. There will be some volunteer opportunities in the exhibit (especially for those with orchid experience), including greenhouse pruning and cleanup, exhibit preparation, sign and exhibit interpretation, and show upkeep. (Contact Emily Rockey at 326-9686, ext. 21 or curator@tucsonbotanical.org if you are interested.)

—Weird Plant Sale— It’s time again for odd and interesting plants to be in the spotlight at the TBG’s Weird Plant Sale! Our goal is to bring to the public the most bizarre, most unique plants by hosting several outside vendors who will help to make your plant collection weirder than your friends’. Browse through crazy cactus, strange succulents, and dramatic xerophytic plants, as well as pottery and other garden products. Shop for Lithops, Euphorbia, Ariocarpus and Haworthia, plus crested and mutant cacti to name a few. If you are a Garden Member, the Member Pre-sale is Friday, June 17, 2011, from 4:30 to 7:30PM. The Public Sale will be Saturday, June 18, 2011, from 8AM-1PM. Plant sale admission is free, and includes Garden Admission.

We will need volunteers to help us during the sale. If you are interested, there will be a sign-up sheet at the Volunteer Pot-luck on May 5th and then it will be located in the volunteer office afterwards. There will be 1 shift on Friday and 2 shifts on Saturday. Please give us a hand!!

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— MAY CLASSES — FIBERS, FUR AND FUN Saturday, May 7, 9AM-Noon Join Desert Museum’s Education Specialist, Jesús García to explore the variety of fibers used by native peoples in the Sonoran Desert region. Learn to gather and process native plant fibers. Experiment with natural and recycle materials and learn techniques to make cordage and rope. And come away with a new view of the desert’s hidden fibers and some great sense of place activities to share with others. $14, $10 members

MARVELOUS MOTHS Thursday, May 12, 6-8PM Did you know that moths are far more abundant than their cousins, the butterflies? Or, that some moths fly during the day and rival butterflies in beauty? In this class, we begin to discover the amazing diversity of moths, focusing on some of the most conspicuous families of moths, such as sphinx moths, tiger moths, giant silk moths, and cutworm moths. Join Jeff Babson of Sky Island Tours for this interesting look at these remarkable insects! $20, $15 members

PENA BLANCA LAKE AND VICINITY BIRDS, BUTTERFLIES, AND DRAGONFLIES Friday, May 13, 8AM-4PM Join Jeff Babson on a journey to Pena Blanca Lake, northwest of Nogales, for a day of birds, butterflies, and dragonflies. We will explore the lake itself, as well as, the hillsides, brush, and trees around the lake for birds. Possibilities include Gray Hawk, Osprey, Vermilion Flycatcher, and many, many others. We will also take time to search for butterflies and dragonflies in the area. Bring plenty of water, lunch, snacks, sunscreen, and comfortable shoes.

Transportation provided. Participants are responsible for bringing their own lunch. Water will be provided. $65, $55 members (register early, limit 10).

REPURPOSING SWIMMING POOLS Saturday, May 14, 9AM-Noon

Have a swimming pool you’ve realized is underused, requires too much maintenance, is too expensive to keep up, is a tremendous waste of water? Instead of simply filling it in and putting a lawn on top, consider the expanse of possibilities for reconfiguring such prime backyard real estate. Tary Campbell, Construction Project Manager and Water Conservation Specialist for REALM™, will share fresh ideas for making innovative

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use of former pools. Options include redesigning former pools to accommodate a sunken patio as well as going an extra step and converting the swimming pool into a built-in water harvesting system below ground with an outdoor-living space above. $25, $20 members

THE CACTUS FAMILY Tuesday, May 17, 2-4PM Not all spiny plants from the desert are cacti, and not all cacti are from the desert. So what is a cactus? What unites this diverse group of plants? We will look at the characteristics of cacti, where they come from, and how to keep them happily growing. Michael Chamberland has studied plants at the University of Connecticut and Arizona State University. With a degree in botany, he has worked both in herbaria and botanical gardens around the U.S. Michael has maintained a special interest in cacti and other succulents. He is currently the Curator of Horticulture at the Tucson Botanical Gardens. $17, $12 members

TASTING YOUR COMMUNITY Saturday, May 21, 9AM-Noon Your community is more than just its people – it’s the whole ecological tapestry of interwoven lives in their environment. What better way to ponder local ecology than to eat of its riches! Join Desert Museum Education Specialists Jesús García to explore ethnoecology of the Sonoran Desert region. Sample native and traditional foods and learn techniques to gather and process them. Experiment with natural fibers and pigments. $14, $10 members THE WEIRD WORLD OF CARNIVOROUS PLANTS Tuesday, May 24, 2-4PM Step right up folks, and dare to see and learn the ways of plants that bite back! Over 600 kinds of plants can catch and digest prey, and some live right here in Arizona!

Join Michael Chamberland, the Gardens Director of Horticulture, for an overview on the world of carnivorous plants. Michael has been growing carnivores for 20 years and has visited many of them in their boggy lairs. You’ll look at how they can snatch flies from the air, and consider why they need to feed. Michael will also give you tips on how to keep them happy and satisfied in cultivation. $17, $12 members

2150 North Alvernon Way

Tucson, Arizona 85712