Monarch News
Are you are interested in following the progress of monarchs in the U.S. as they travel to and from their wintering grounds?
Western monarch populations grew over 100-fold in 2021. Why?
From PBS News: The beloved butterflies had fallen to critical levels in recent years. Experts weigh in on what might be causing their remarkable return.
Western monarch populations grew over 100-fold in 2021. Why?
From PBS News: The beloved butterflies had fallen to critical levels in recent years. Experts weigh in on what might be causing their remarkable return.
Project Nature Newsletter - July 2020
The PROJECT NATURE NEWSLETTER - JULY 2020 issue features the monarch butterfly. The publication contains a wealth of information and photography on life cycle, phenology, milkweed, migration, and much more.
Monarch Rearing, Tagging, and Releasing Survey
If you raise and/or tag monarchs, please consider helping Monarch Watch out by taking their Monarch Rearing, Tagging, and Releasing Survey. The information will help them understand the process to better assist those who are engaged in this practice. The ultimate goal is to improve the chances of monarchs to successfully migrate to their wintering grounds and survive the winter.
Historic Agreement to Conserve Habitat for Monarchs and other Pollinators - April 8, 2020
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the University of Illinois-Chicago have signed a "Candidate Conservation Agreement" that encourages transportation and energy partners to participate in monarch conservation by providing and maintaining habitat on millions of acres of rights-of-way and associated lands. To read more about this agreement, view the PRESS RELEASE.
Recent Counts of Wintering Western Monarchs
Between December 25, 2021 and January 9, 2022, volunteers counted a total of 151,168 monarchs at 209 overwintering sites along the California and northern Baja coast (See the Xerces Report, Western Monarch Count). Despite a general uptick in the western monarch population this year, monitoring efforts reveal that the migratory population of western monarchs has declined more than 95 percent in the western U.S. since the 1980s.
WWF-Telmex Telcel Foundation Alliance, with National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (CONANP), National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), and Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve (MBBR), today announced total forest area occupied by overwintering monarch colonies in 2021/2022 as 2.84 ha, a 35% increase from previous season (2.10 ha). Monarch Butterfly Fund remains concerned as Trinational Monarch Conservation Science Partnership set 6 ha as level at which monarch migration will be sustained. Much work remains to be done!
Utah Monarch (tagged Aug. 31, 2019) Found Alive and Well in Pismo Beach, CA - Jan. 3, 2020
First 2020 recovery in California! Craig Corwin found BH478, a male monarch, along the coast. "I caught these two negotiating a date. Monarch Butterfly Grove, Pismo Beach, CA 1/3/20." BH478 was a wild monarch tagged by Hilary Whitcomb with Rachel Taylor in American Fork, Utah, on August 31 while nectaring on Joe Pye Weed (Eutrochium). BH478 flew 603 miles Southwest to reach his overwintering home of choice. Thank you to Hilary for tagging and to Craig for finding and reporting BH478 - and the great photo!
Western States Adopt Monarch Conservation Plan (2019-2069) - January 19, 2019
The Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) adopted a WESTERN MONARCH CONSERVATION PLAN at their recent meeting in Tucson, AZ. The plan establishes population size and habitat conservation goals, objectives, and strategies for the butterflies that overwinter along the California coast and range primarily across California, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Utah. Combined with the MID-AMERICA MONARCH CONSERVATION STRATEGY adopted by the Midwestern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies last June, the Western Monarch Conservation Plan is designed to secure the future of the species, range wide. Implementation of the plan will be overseen by the Western Monarch Population Initiative Council that includes the directors of the seven states named above, a member of the WAFWA Executive Committee, and up to seven ex-officio members representing key sectors and agency partners.
Monarchs Designated as Candidate Species Under the ESA
On December 15, 2020, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) announced that listing the monarch as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) is warranted, but precluded by higher priority listing actions. The decision is the result of an extensive status review of the monarch that compiled and assessed the monarch’s current and future status. The monarch is now a candidate under the Endangered Species Act; they will review its status annually until a listing decision is made. See Assessing the Status of the Monarch Butterfly for more information.