You Can Help the Vanishing Monarch Butterflies Alicia Graef - Care2
go to original November 6, 2013

Monarch Butterflies Migration Google Earth Tour (EncyclopediaOfLife)

As the first wave of an amazing multigenerational migration of monarchs arrives in Mexico this month for winter, scientists are finding every link in their complex life cycle is under threat.

Already facing natural high mortality during migration from causes that can range from predators, including birds, mice, insects and parasites, to the risk of getting drenched in rain when temperatures drop, the monarch now struggles against its greatest threat: the consequences of human behavior. Luckily, conservationists have discovered how we can help offset the threat.

The number of monarch butterflies has steadily dropped around 80 percent, or more by some estimates, in the past 15 years, barely recovering from the lowest plummet in 2009-2010.

... MonarchWatch, a conservation and outreach program, is urging people to get involved by planting and maintaining “waystations” to help monarchs along their migration by offsetting the losses of milkweed habitats. The organization offers seed kits and the opportunity to register sites with the International Monarch Waystation Registry.

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