Article: Nadia Ouellette, CGOWCA Environment Committee
Photo credit: Dave Keys
Fall is upon us, and we will soon witness the migration of the Monarch butterfly. From September to October, Eastern Monarchs begin their long migration from Canada to Mexico. These amazing insects will fly over 4000 km (2500 miles) to central Mexico. On average they can fly 100 miles per day and one single Monarch was documented to fly 250 miles in one day!
There are typically four to five generations of Monarchs per year. The fall adult population, tasked with this long journey to Mexico, can live up to nine months. They live over winter as adults then lay eggs in Mexico. These eggs become generation one, who will migrate north and lay new generations of eggs along the way. This is considered one of the marvels of nature as these insects are migrating long distances to a land they have never seen before. They inherently know which direction to travel.
Unfortunately, the population of this majestic insect has declined by 90% since the 1990s. Agriculture and urban development have destroyed habitat and food required to sustain the travelling Monarchs. Heavy use of herbicides and pesticides are also destroying the plants needed to feed Monarch’s and killing the insects themselves.
What can we do? As with most butterflies, the caterpillar stage can only eat from specific plants. The host plant for the Monarch is milkweed. Ontario is lucky to have a variety of beautiful native milkweeds. To help preserve the Monarch, it’s important to plant milkweeds in your garden. Having other native plants available to feed the adult butterfly is also important for their survival.
Creating a Monarch Garden | Monarch Teacher Network Presentation
Thursday, September 26, 2024 at 7:30 PM / Hall A, Bob Macquarrie Rec Complex
FREE (Donations welcome)
We are pleased to announce that we are hosting The Monarch Teacher Network for a lecture on “Creating a Monarch Garden”. Please join us Thursday September 26th, 7:30 pm at Bob MacQuarrie, Hall A for a complementary community discussion on how your garden can help the Monarch.
