Local forecast

Today

Sunny. Patchy valley fog early in the morning. Highs in the upper 70s. South winds 5 to 10 mph.

 

Tonight

Clear. Lows in the mid 50s. South winds 5 to 10 mph.

Bates County Youth Center opens next week

The Butler Youth Center will open on Tuesday, Sept 7. The center is sponsored by the Bates County Youth Advocacy Council and offers nightly activities and meals for community youth. One change over last year's schedule will be that the center will open one hour earlier on Thursday's to adjust for the new release time of Butler school students. Hours will be 3:30 to 5:30 pm on Tuesdays and 2:30 to 5:30 pm on Thursdays.


The Youth Center is located in the old high school building at Pine and Havana streets in Butler. For more information contact Youth Center President Kris Jenkins at 660-679-4167. Donations are welcomed!

Monarch's coming soon....to a tree near you?

Many of the monarchs we see this time of year in Missouri are part of the massive southward migration of monarchs to their winter sanctuaries in Mexico (track their migration at www.learner.org/jnorth/monarch). Though monarchs produce several broods during the summer and fall months, it is the final fall generation that makes the arduous cross-country trip. This generation will live longer than the others — 7 to 8 months rather than the typical 4 to 5 weeks. These same butterflies will return to the southern U.S. in the spring. Their shorter-lived offspring will continue migrating northward over subsequent generations.

An equally fascinating aspect of the monarch is the transformation that takes place when the caterpillar becomes an adult butterfly. This process, known as metamorphosis, is not unique to monarchs, but is nonetheless a stunning display.

Monarch caterpillars are very tiny when they first hatch from the egg. The adult female monarch butterfly lays its eggs on the underside of milkweed leaves. When the caterpillar hatches, it feeds almost continuously on the milkweed for about two weeks while it grows to a full size of about 2 inches long. When the caterpillar is full grown, it usually leaves the milkweed plant in search of a safe place to pupate.

When the caterpillar is ready to pupate, it attaches itself to a branch or other similar anchor by making a silk-like pad. The caterpillar hangs upside down from this pad by its last pair of legs in a J-shape.

After hanging in a J-shape for about a day, the caterpillar begins to shed its skin for the fifth and last time. Previous sheddings allowed the caterpillar to grow bigger. This time, the caterpillar sheds its skin to reveal a green casing called a chrysalis. As the skin is pushed to the bottom of the body, the cremaster appears. This spiny appendage attaches the chrysalis to the silk pad. This whole process happens in as little as 60 seconds.

The chrysalis is very soft at first, but within an hour it hardens into a protective shell. Inside this casing a dramatic transformation takes place. Wings are formed and chewing mouthparts are replaced with a straw-like tongue, or proboscis, that the adult butterfly uses to sip nectar. Tissue, limbs and organs are all changed during this process. The beginnings of different body parts of the adult butterfly can be recognized in the chrysalis itself. The large, leaf-like flaps at the bottom become the wings, and the upper, ridged, portion defines the thorax.

In about two weeks the chrysalis will start becoming transparent, revealing the orange and black wings of the newly formed butterfly.

Once the monarch has completed its transformation, the chrysalis will suddenly crack open, and the fully formed monarch butterfly will crawl out in as little as 30 seconds. The butterfly’s wings are wet and crumpled when it emerges. The monarch is very vulnerable to predators at this stage, as it cannot fly. It clings to the empty chrysalis and pumps a blood-like substance through its wings to enlarge and strengthen them.

After about an hour, the monarch’s wings are dry and ready for flying. In about a week the Monarch will be mature enough to reproduce and begin the life cycle of the next generation.

La Cygne city wide garage sale this weekend

Hop across the border and check out the bargains at the La Cygne city wide garage sale sponsored by the La Cygne Chamber of Commerce this weekend. According to City Clerk Gary Mahon, the sales are supposed to start early tomorrow, but some anxious sellers are putting their items out this afternoon....

Mahon also told us the Circus is coming to La Cygne this Sunday and will be set up in the city park. There will be two shows- 2 pm and 4:30 pm and advance tickets are on sale at local stores including the Longhorn just west of the power plant.

Bears beat St. Marys 28-13

The Butler Bears thumped St. Mary's with a final score of 28-13 in varsity football action last night.

Former Butler mayor dies

Former Butler mayor Jerry Cook passed away from an apparent heart attack while leaving the Chief's football game last night. Bates County Live will provide obituary information as soon as it becomes available.

Area wide events calendar now available on BatesCountyLive.com

Don't miss an important local event because you forgot the date- Bates County Live now has a community wide calendar that is chock full of upcoming events. Go to our home page at BatesCountyLive.com and click on the Local Calendar link for time, dates and info on upcoming events. We are adding to the calendar every day; if you have an item you would like for us to include, send us an email at bateswire@hotmail.com.

Upper 40's tonight

Today

Sunny. Highs in the mid 70s. Northwest winds 10 to 15 mph. Gusts up to 25 mph in the afternoon.

Tonight

Clear. Patchy fog early in the morning. Lows in the upper 40s. Northwest winds 5 to 10 mph.