The Battery

The Daily Plant : Wednesday, September 25, 2002

NORTH AMERICAN MONARCH BUTTERFLY MIGRATION:

Photo by Malcolm Pinckney

On Thursday, September 19, from the terrace of Belvedere Castle, children and adults joined Consul General of Mexico in New York Salvador Beltrán del Río and Chief of the Urban Park Service Alex Brash to greet fall by helping researchers tag and release Monarch butterflies.

The Autumnal Equinox was only days away and winter close behind, as the northeastern Monarch butterflies prepared to make their annual flight to the forests of Mexico. New Yorkers who gathered at Belvedere Castle wished them a splendid vacation and safe return. Monarch Watch, a network of students, teachers, researchers, and volunteers teamed up with Urban Park Rangers, the Central Park Conservancy, and NYC-based film company MasterVision to tag, observe, and release these majestic insects. Mariachi music by Real de Mexico gave the kids a taste of the life these butterflies have to look forward to.

Everyone on hand during this special day was a part of history. The butterflies will now follow their natural migratory paths. These paths lead the butterflies to Mexico. Upon arrival some of the butterflies will be caught, their data recorded, and then they will be released to enjoy a warm Mexican winter. This nationwide annual event helps North and Central American scientists determine how many butterflies survived the migration, from where they originate and what migratory paths they follow.

The Monarch Watch, one of the Urban Park Rangers' Explorer Programs, invites adults and kids of every age to experience the parks as never before. For more information these programs, call (866) NYC-HAWK.

MANHHATTAN BLOOD DRIVE A SUCCESS

A blood drive held in the Arsenal last week was a huge success thanks to its organizer, Hedi Piel, and those 115 Parkies that gave blood. On Tuesday, September 17 and Wednesday, September 18, the Arsenal Gallery was filled with nurses in blue scrubs, stretchers with Parks employees on them, lots of juice and cookies to reenergize those that donated blood, and, of course, lots of blood. 25 people were turned away from the trained employees from the New York Blood Center because they didn't fit the requirements to donate blood. The 115 Parkies that did donate blood came from Manhattan Borough (42 donors), the Arsenal (21 donors), Central Park Conservancy (19 donors), Arsenal West (13 donors), and Arsenal North (8 donors). Other Parkies who must have been at the Arsenal for official business also rolled up a sleeve, including 12 donors from the Bronx, 5-Boro, Olmsted, and the Central Park Zoo.

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO IN THE PLANT
(Tuesday, October 3, 1989)
A WALK THAT'S FIT TO SPRINT

In the 1980s American learned to walk. Not just from the house to the car, but for health and fitness.

To promote walking for exercise, Parks and the New York Times Good Health Magazine will sponsor the third annual Good Health Walk and Festival on Sunday, October 15 from 1 to 4:30 p.m.

The four-mile sojourn will follow a route on Broadway from Times Square to Battery Park, with Commissioner Stern leading the way as the walk's grand marshal. At Battery Park, walkers can cool down with stretching exercises and enjoy a health festival presented by Parks' Recreation division and Good Health Magazine.

QUOTATION FOR THE DAY
''No one can look back on his schooldays
and say with truth that they were altogether unhappy.''
George Orwell
(1903-1950)

Know Before You Go

The Battery