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suiteofmulticolored transitionsinamanner

thatappearedtodefyphysics.

Although having abrain no largerthan a

pinhead, and weighing less than apaper clip,

monarch butterflies navigate great distances.

Unable to regulate their temperatures, they

travel south fromasfar northasCanada.

Williamsdescribes how —likepilgrims walk-

ing alongSpain’s CaminodeSantiago—they

maketheirwaysouthalongoneofthreebutter-

flyhighwaystowardMexico,wheretheyvaca-

tionduringthewintermonths.TheCalifornia

coastharborsahostofoverwinteringmonarch

zones,includingPismoBeachandMorroBay.

But more than half of these have been aban-

doned in recent years, and the numberof

migratingbutterfliesissteadilyfalling.Thisis

in partbecause of the loss of their habitats,

whichhavebeensubsumedbyintensivemon-

oculture, orchards, vineyardsand farms. It is

also aresult of changesinthe frequencyof

species such as the milkweed plant thatplay

keyrolesintheirlifecycle.

Despitetheir radiant beautyand often-de-

scribedgentlenature,malemonarchsindulge

in brutal sexual behavior,knocking down fe-

malesandforcingthemselvesuponthemwhile

theyare in ahalf-dazed state, according to a

description Miriam Rothschild providedin a

1978essaytitled“Hell’sAngels.”Butclosetothe

timeofmigration,theirbehaviorundergoesan

abruptchange.Insteadofflittingaroundchas-

ing females and feedingonnectar from flow-

ers,theybecomehighlysocial,gregariousand

focusedonflyingsouth.Butnotallbutterflies

develop atravel bug.Fenderblues are home-

bodies anddonot vacation,and whereas the

majority of monarchs fly back north in the

summermonths, afew decidetovacation

year-roundinMexico.

OnreviewingCharlesDarwin’s “TheOrigin

of Species,”the highly religious entomologist

ThomasVernonWollastonnotedthattheexis-

tenceofbutterflies provedthatDarwinwas

wrong.Forhow could the marvelous “tints of

certainbutterflies”betheproductofanything

but design? But in facttheyoffered asound

corroborationofDarwin’stheory.

Whilebutterflies provide us with whatthe

author Vladimir Nabokov described as “the

highestenjoymentof timelessness”andteach

ushowlifehasco-evolvedasacomplexnexus

of interconnectivities, the gradual disappear-

ance of thesemagnificentcreaturesand the

ancientsecretstheyinvokeshouldshakeusto

the core. We mustreach out to preserve the

remainingfragilewildernessesbeforetheyare

nomore.

AdrianWoolfsonis theauthor of“Life Without

Genes.”

thorofthebest-selling“TheWonderfulTrans-

formationandStrongFloralFoodofCaterpil-

lars”(1679)andthediscovererofthemetamor-

phosisofcaterpillarsintobutterflies,resigned

herselftothefactthatshecouldnotre-create

thedazzlingbrillianceand auraofbutterflies

with watercolors. Thefleeting and ephemeral

natureofthecolorswasaffectedbytheangleof

vision,whichshiftedtheiridescencethrougha

and butterflies —islikely,inthe words of the

natural historianRichard Fortey,tobe“as

familiarwith thespeckles and dapplingofa

butterflywingashewouldbewiththefacesof

his own family,” capturing this dynamic pat-

tern of color has proved challenging.The ex-

plorer and firstnatural historian of Lepi-

doptera, Maria Sibylla Merian, who was the

epitomeofanEnlightenmentwoman,theau-

F

or many, insectsare an annoyance

and at bestaninconvenience. They

deserveand even demandtobedis-

patched to an abrupt and untimely

demise.In VictorianEngland,onthe

otherhand,insectsweresoreveredthatdocu-

mentingandcataloguingthembecameapopu-

lar and passionatepastime. Theeccentric

banker Charles Rothschild is said to have

stoppedatraintoallowhisservantstocapture

arare species of butterfly thathehad spotted

from awindow.His daughter MiriamRoth-

schild, in between determiningthe mecha-

nism by which fleasjump and establishinga

dragonfly reserve on her estate, became a

leading authorityonthe monarch butterfly,

whichshe described as “the mostinteresting

insectintheworld.”

Inhergloriousandexuberantcelebrationof

thesebiological flying machines,“TheLan-

guageofButterflies,”WendyWilliamstakesus

onahumorousandbeautifullycraftedjourney

thatexploresboththenatureofthesecurious

andhighlyintelligentinsectsandtheeccentric

individuals who coveted them. En route we

discover,among other things, the remarkable

interconnectivityoflivingthings, the decep-

tionsthatinsectsdeploytotrickpredatorsand

the complexitiesthatpresent asignificant

challengetoour attempts to conserve the

rapidlydisappearingnaturalworld.

Thebeguilingnatureofbutterflies,inpartic-

ular the more extravagantones such as the

monarch, issues from the remarkable“flash

anddazzle”oftheirwingpatterningandcolor-

ation. Forsome enthusiasts, the wings of a

monarchinvokeanalmostmetaphysicalsense

of exhilaration similarto thatexperienced

whileobservingthestained-glasswindowsofa

cathedral. Indeed, Williams enthusiastically

assertsthatthe monarch’s wings are nature’s

versionofParis’sNotreDame.Sherapturously

describes the traysofdead butterflies housed

atYaleUniversityas“kaleidoscopicassemblag-

es”thatare“sosensuous,soentirelyluscious”

andreminiscentofaTurnerseascape.

Theillusiveandenigmaticpageantofcolor

generated by butterfly wings arises, in part,

fromthewaythetinyscalescoveringthewings

play tricks with and manipulate light,while

alsofunctioningasopticalfilters.Thebrilliant

blue hue of the blue morpho butterfly,for

instance, is achieved in aunique manner.

Ratherthansynthesizing pigment,the scales

selectively removelight of everyother wave-

length, leaving only blue. Itsunique clarity,

Williamsinformsus, is reminiscent of the

vibratingandshimmeringblueofMary’sdress

in Michelangelo’s Holy Family, housedinthe

UffiziGalleryinFlorence.

Whilealepidopterist—anexpertinmoths

NATURE REVIEWBY ADRIANWOOLFSON

The insects that seem to defy physics —and have humans under their spell

RONALDWITTEK/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK

THE

LANGUAGEOF

BUTTERFLIES

HowThieves,

Hoarders,

Scientists, and

Other

Obsessives

Unlockedthe

Secretsofthe

World’s

FavoriteInsect

By Wendy

Williams

Simon&

Schuster.

256 pp. $26

Thetinyscaleson a

butterfly’swings

manipulateand

playtrickswith

light,enchanting

manywho study

them.

EMILIOESPEJEL/ASSOCIATEDPRESS

pending homestudies, international legalis-

sues,etc.”

But theydid understand,Soboroff insists.

Many parents,who often couldn’t read the

Englishformstheyweregiven,wouldsignover

theirrightstoseekasylumandtoreunitewith

their childreninthe United States,while the

children wondered whytheir parents had

abandonedthem.

Withtheimmediacyofcablenews,Soboroff

attemptstoreconstructthequietrun-uptothe

publicacknowledgmentofthepolicy, including

oneofficial’seffortstodestroytheinternallistof

separatedparentsandchildren.Heinterweaves

thisreportingwithhisownon-the-groundwork

asoneofthefirstjournaliststoenterdetention

facilitiesholdingtheseparatedchildren.Andhe

followsJuanandJosé,aGuatemalanfatherand

sonseekingasylumwhoaresweptintothemaw

oftheseparationmachine.

“Thisplaceiscalledashelter, buteffectively

these kidsare incarcerated,” astunnedSo-

borofftellshisMSNBCcolleague,anchorChris

Hayes,inJune2018,momentsafterwitnessing

some 1,500boys being held in aconverted

formerWalmart.

Soboroff,whoacknowledgesthathecameto

the storylate, offers generous recognition to

fellowjournalistsand the advocateswho saw

theloomingcrisiswellbeforehedid—though

an indexand detailed endnotes would have

madeiteasier to keep track of their findings

and given the book aheftierfeel. Ultimately,

the reporteristhe protagonist, providingthe

book’sstrengthandemotionalcore,butalsoat

timesmakingitseemoverlyself-referential.

Trump signed an ordertoofficially end the

mass family separationsinlateJune 2018,

following apublicoutcry, thoughit’s unclear

how manychildren remain separated —in

largepartbecause of poorrecord-keeping.

Meanwhile, the administrationhas sought to

replacetheprogramwithlongerfamilydeten-

tionsandtocutdownonthoseevenpermitted

toapplyforasylum.

Congressisunlikelytoactonimmigrationin

theremainingmonthsofthiselectioncycle.And

the Supreme Court’sdecision to fast-trackthe

deportationofasylumseekersmeanspeoplelike

JuanandJosécouldeasilybesentbacktotheir

countriesbeforelawmakerseverstepin.Alast-

ingsolutiontothecrisisatthebordermustcome

fromCongressandwillprobablybeashard-won

this time as it wasinthe 20th century. As both

SoboroffandYangdemonstrate,itwillinevitably

requireareckoningwithboththehistoryandthe

present storywetell ourselves about America

being anationofimmigrants. “Likeany myth,”

Yangwrites,“theideaeasilygoesunexamined—

exaltedandtreatedasifitwereadivine,immuta-

ble basis forthiscountry’sexistence, when it is

theworkofhumanbeings,easilyerasedbyother

humanbeings.”

LauraWides-Muñozisajournalistandtheauthor

of“Th eMakingofaDream:HowaGroupofYoung

UndocumentedImmigrantsHelpedChangeWhatIt

MeanstoBeAmerican.”

tions become mind-numbing. And oneisre-

mindedwhyevenhistoriansoftenshedallbuta

fewprotagonistsinserviceofatightandlinear

narrative. YetYang’s voyageacross early-20th-

centuryU.S.immigrationdebatesmakespalpa-

blehowmuchdiplomacyandperseveranceare

required to win legislativechange.Thatittook

the UnitedStates 40years tothrow outthe

majorityofitsmost-racistimmigrationpolicies

andmodernizeitssystemmightoffersomehope

tothosewhohavebeenfightingnearlyaslongto

overhaulthelatestincarnationofthislaw.

The1965 lawhad anotherlegacy:the first

limitsonimmigrationfromLatinAmerica.In

“Separated,”Soboroff,anNBC and MSNBC

correspondent,zerosinontheresultinginflux

of undocumented immigrants across the

southernborderand,intheabsenceofcongres-

sional action, theTrump administration’s re-

sponse: ahastily developed policy of separat-

ing parents and children withoutaplanfor

trackingandreunitingthem.

Althoughsuchseparationshadbeencarried

out occasionally under previous administra-

tions,Soboroffdescribeshow,onlyweeksafter

Trump’s inauguration, officials began discuss-

ing whether to implement the tactic on a

widespread level. Theidea was thatimmi-

grants crossing illegally, and even somewho

presentedthemselvesatofficialpointsofentry,

couldimmediatelybedetainedandpotentially

prosecutedforcriminalentry, whiletheirchil-

drenwould be whiskedawayhundreds or

thousands of milestoshelters normally re-

servedforunaccompaniedminors.

Soboroffquotes one Health and Human

Services staffer’semail from late September

2017,criticizingthe DepartmentofHomeland

Security’soperations. “Theydon’tunderstand

...these typesofcases oftenend with parent

repatriatedand kid in our care for months

Congress’sactionscarriedweightacrossthe

Atlantic, where Yang describes ayoungAdolf

HitlerheapingpraiseontheUnited Statesfor

barring “the immigration of physically un-

healthyelements”and“certainraces.”

Eventhe1965reformanditsfocusonfamily

connectionsoverskillsetsweredueinparttoa

coregroupoflawmakerswhobelievedthatthe

law wouldfavor the country’shistoricNorth-

ernEuropeanstreamovernewerinfluxesfrom

Africa,Asiaandotherpartsoftheworld.

Yang sketches lively portraits of the famous

and obscure players behind the legislative

fights, likeRep. EmanuelCeller,afreshman

congressman who came to Washington from

Brooklynin1923andfoundhimselfa“lostsoul,”

achingforhiswifeandbabydaughter,butwho,

likeanumber of Jewish lawmakers and advo-

cates, becameastalwartdefender of postwar

refugeesandotherimmigrants.Thentherewas

TakaoOzawa,whoarrivedintheUnitedStates

at19andpetitionedunsuccessfullyfortheright

ofJapaneseimmigrantslikehimselftobecome

U.S.citizens,arguingin1915:“Inname,General

BenedictArnoldwasanAmerican,butatheart

hewasatraitor.Inname,IamnotanAmerican,

butatheartIamatrueAmerican.”

Thebook underscoreshow manyofthe

nearlycentury-old debatesoverour immigra-

tionsystemremaininplay:whetherthecoun-

tryshouldprioritizeimmigrantswithhigh-de-

mandskills over those withfamily; whether

championing immigrantscomes at the ex-

pense of working-class Americans; the way

immigrants are often pushedto“climb the

social ladder”byacquiring“whiteness”and

distancingfromAfricanAmericans;andmore

broadly,whetherour nationwill cling toits

Anglo-Europeanrootsormore fullyembrace

itsgrowingdiversity.

Attimes,thedetailsofthebackroomnegotia-

T

heSupremeCourtthissummerissued

twomajor immigration rulings:one

temporarily blockingthe Trump ad-

ministration’s quest to end Obama-

eraprotections for young undocu-

mentedimmigrants,theotherallowingthead-

ministrationtospeedupdeportationsofpeople

whoseasylumclaimshavebeendenied.Togeth-

er these rulings highlightthe immensepower

andlimitationsofthepresidencywhenitcomes

to setting immigration policy. Presidentscan

bothorderanddispensewithrulesthatalterthe

livesofhundredsofthousandsofpeople,evenas

itisCongressintheendthatwritestheblueprint

forwhocancalltheUnitedStateshome.

Through distinct lenses,two newbooks

underscorethislong-standing tension be-

tweenCongressandtheexecutivebranchand,

onadeeperlevel,theUnitedStates’conflicted

relationship withits identity as anationof

immigrants. In “One Mighty and Irresistible

Tide:TheEpicStruggleOverAmericanImmi-

gration, 1924-1965,” JiaLynn Yang pans wide

across the often overlooked 40-year battle to

overhaul racistand restrictive immigration

lawspassedintheearly20thcentury.Thebook

culminatesinthepassageofthe1965Immigra-

tionandNationalityAct,ortheHart-CellerAct,

whichYangcreditsforherownfamily’simmi-

gration to the United States from Taiwanand

China—andwhichhasbecomethebedrockof

ourcurrentimmigrationsystem.

In “Separated: InsideanAmerican Tragedy,”

JacobSoboroffzoomsinonPresidentTrumpand

his administration’s decision to separatechil-

drenfromtheirparentsasadeterrenttoborder

crossers.Indoingso,heilluminateshow,inthe

face ofcongressional inaction, acadreofpresi-

dential advisers can introducepolicies with

shocking,unintendedconsequences.

Muchhasbeenwritteninrecentyearsabout

the1965immigrationlaw,whichprioritizedfam-

ily-linkedvisasand endedthe national-origins

quotasfavoringWhiteNorthernEuropeans.But

Yang,deputy national editoratthe NewYork

TimesandaformerWashingtonPosteditor,digs

intothetectonicgeopoliticalshiftsthatledtothe

law’s passage.Alongthe way, she reminds her

audience thatthe current president’sdivisive

and at times racist, anti-immigrant rhetoricis

hardlyanoutlierinAmericanhistory.

WhileaBroadway-boundplay,“TheMelting

Pot,”openedinD.C.in1908 to applause from

none other than President Theodore

Roosevelt,alittle more thanadecadelater,

Yang reminds us, prominent lawmakers in

Washington were callingthe phrase obsolete.

“Wenolonger are to be ahaven,arefuge, for

oppressedthewholeworldover.Wefoundwe

could notbe...and America will cease to

becomeameltingpot,”declaredSen.DavidA.

ReedofPennsylvania shortly beforethe pas-

sageofthe1924immigrationlawthatbearshis

name. Thelaw shut thedoor on immigration

fromJapan,the lastAsian countrywhose

citizens couldstill receive U.S. visas,and it

slashedimmigrationfromSouthernandEast-

ernEuropeforseveraldecades.

IMMIGRATION REVIEWBY LAURAWIDES-MUÑOZ

How long fights and hasty decisions have shaped immigration policy

ONEMIGHTY

AND

IRRESISIBLE

TIDE

TheEpic

StruggleOver

American

Immigration

1924 -1965

By JiaLynn Yang

Norton.

324 pp. $26.95

SEPARATED

Insidean

American

Tragedy

By Jacob

Soboroff

CustomHouse.

388 pp. $29.99

Peoplemaketheir

waythrough aU.S.

border crossingat

Tijuana,Mexico,

lastSeptember.A

1965 lawplaced the

firstlimits on

immigration from

Latin America,

leading toarisein

undocumented

migrants.