Lots of people ask me, "How did you get into this?". I totally understand! Never in my life did I think I would be a butterfly breeder! So let me tell you exactly how this happened.
I was always into nature and science for as far back as I can remember. I was the kid that had to empty their pockets when they came home from playing in the woods because I had filled them with "cool rocks". I joined just about every club or extracurricular I could that had anything to do with engineering, conservation, or science competitions. However, I originally went to college for Astronomy and Astrophysics. At some point in my academic career, I realized that wasn't the right path for me. I had thought I would get us to Mars one day because I knew our time on Earth as a species is limited. I came to understand how important all life on Earth is and how our best chance of survival as a species is actually by preserving and protecting all the other species on this planet. So, I switched to studying ecology. Before I could finish my degree, I started a family and had to provide for them instead. I worked my way from an entry-level job at a financial firm to building robotic processes. These bots were essentially automations, not physical robots. I finished my degree with plans to work as a software engineer until I retired.
At some point, I became obsessed with plants! I grew whatever I could in my limited space, from houseplants to vegetables. This hobby took off when I started a victory garden during lockdown. This is how I first found a caterpillar to raise. It was a Gray Hairstreak caterpillar eating away at some beans I had brought inside. Not knowing what to do exactly, I identified the bug, read up on it, and attempted to rear it. It worked and I went on to raise whatever caterpillars I found in the garden after that.
My work as a software engineer allowed me to provide for my family, but I couldn't help but feel that my contributions were ultimately all for nothing. I read daily news articles talking about yet another sign of global warming and our impending doom. I felt helpless, so I started to look for ways I could do something, anything, while still working as a developer. Eventually, I made a list of what I felt were the top threats to address, with the disappearance of pollinators being high on that list. While I had never been particularly fond of insects before, despite working in an invertebrate lab during my college work-study, I now had a newfound appreciation for them from my caterpillar rearing. I researched what I could do to turn my interest into something impactful, and that's how I found Ryan Malone of The Hatchery Butterfly Farm.
Ryan had done an interview talking about how he became a butterfly breeder in Kansas, and I felt like he was exactly where I was when he started. In his interview, he directed people to the IBBA or International Butterfly Breeders Association, so I joined! The association had tons of resources available on their site for rearing butterflies. I signed up to attend one of their new breeder workshops. This was held in Florida at Connie Hodsdon's farm, Flutterby Gardens. Connie has over 25 years of experience raising butterflies and is considered to be one of the best (if not the best) Monarch breeder in the country. The workshop taught me everything I could possibly need to know to start a breeding operation the right way. Oddly enough, Ryan was also attending the workshop! Ryan is now the association's president, while I have just this year been elected as vice president.
So, fast forward two years to today, and I'm about to enter my third season as a professional butterfly breeder! I formed my company intending to use my work as a breeder to bring attention to all pollinators and educate people about the dangers they face (more to come in another post). I've met so many people at events and markets and have had great conversations about conservation and promoting pollinators. My favorite part of the job has to be seeing kids get so excited about the bugs. A few kids have blown me away with how much they already knew about butterflies and moths before meeting me! It's honestly what keeps me going, but I want everyone to remember the moment they held a butterfly at one of my events. Connecting with such a tiny and fragile insect can change people, and I hope it will open their eyes to the other tiny beings all around them that need our consideration and protection. Humans are not alone in this world. We have the capacity to take responsibility for other species sharing this planet with us.
コメント