CHAPTER 3
 RESULTS

 Main Experiment Butterfly Oviposition in North Central Florida

 After a period of 10 days of data collection at two north central Florida butterfly farms,

60 observations (30 for each farm) were taken on oviposition for each of 11 transects. At these

two farms, sufficient data were collected from Monarch butterfly oviposition, but neither farm

yielded sufficient oviposition data for the Eastern Black Swallowtail or the Common Buckeye.

Although Buckeyes and Swallowtails were frequently seen at both farms by the researcher, no

Buckeye eggs and only 2 Swallowtail eggs were observed during the entire 10-day period on all

transects. Therefore, statistical models and summary statistics are meaningless for these two

butterflies. Monarch oviposition, however, was indeed commonplace, and therefore is the main

subj ect for this oviposition experiment in north central Florida.

 Mean egg number per day was highest for those transects closest to the farm epicenter.

Then, egg number proceeded to decline and level out at a lower mean for transects more distal to

the farm epicenter (Figure 3-1). Figure 3-1 provides a summary of mean egg numbers per day at

each transect for monarch oviposition at the north central Florida farms. Summary statistics are

provided in Table 3-1. From these data, it is evident that the highest egg numbers are found

closer to the farm, with transects 1, 2, 3, and 4 yielding the highest egg numbers (3.033, 2.933,

2.933, and 2.700 eggs/day respectively). Starting with transect 5, which exhibited an average of

1.683 eggs/day, egg numbers then dropped off by approximately 1.5 eggs per day. Transects 5

through 7 exhibit a downward sloping trend as egg numbers proceeded to decline until rising

again at transect 8. However, transect 9 exhibited the lowest egg number of all, at 1.067

eggs/day. Then, a slight increase was exhibited with transect 10 seeing 1.4 eggs/day and transect

11 seeing 1.633 eggs/day. This up and down pattern between 5 and 11 is only slight when