The Monarch Diaries: Save the Monarch Butterflies.
One of my favorite memories from childhood is from first grade, helping my teacher pick milkweed after school for our classroom caterpillars. Watching the caterpillars chomp the milkweed, form their chrysalises and emerge as butterflies amazed me. That memory stuck with me into adulthood & when my daughter showed interest in Monarch butterflies, I knew what to do. My husband's aunt has lots of milkweed at her house and happened to have an abundance of eggs and caterpillars she was wiling to share with us. So we took some home and started raising the butterflies together. We are having so much fun learning about the lifecycle as a family and the kids seem just as amazed as I was when I was a kid.
We watched as our eggs hatched tiny little caterpillars that grew larger, formed their hanging J and then spun their chrysalises. As I said, the whole process is amazing! Here is a chart that explains the lifecycle of the Monarch:
Source
Not the best quality, but we caught 3 of our Monarch's emerging from their Chrysalises!! Then we released them into the wild for their Big migration! It was so awesome watching them fly away! You can see more pictures and videos of the release in my Instagram Stories.
Our first monarch to emerge was a male! You can tell by the 2 black dots on the lower center of his wing.
The Monarch Butterflies are in trouble. Their numbers are dwindling and fewer and fewer are making the annual migration. This is due to many factors such as climate change and wide spread pesticide spraying which destroys their food source, the milk weed plant.Numbers of monarchs have decreased significantly over the last 20 years, but together we can save the monarch. In the United States, there is a massive effort to provide habitat for monarch butterflies, imperiled bumble bees and other pollinators.You can find so much good information about how you can help on the US Fish & Wildlife Service's website.Here are a few of the ways you can contribute:
- Plant Milkweed for the butterflies. Find seeds native to your area.
- Create a community wildlife garden.
- Get your local School involved.
- Plant a pollinator garden.
- Educate others about the plight of the Monarchs.
- Help Scientists track the Monarchs.
Interested in raising and saving Monarchs at home? Here are some things I suggest having to get started:
- Milkweed plants - you can get seeds and plant them in the fall. Find seeds native to your area.
- Books to learn more! Here is another good one!
- Get a Butterfly house to raise your butterflies in.
Planning on doing your part to save the Monarchs? I would love to hear all about it!![amazon_link asins='1943366179,B075QC9RBS,B018C1OO28,B074ZHXF48,B07CWRV1CZ,B003E46ER2,B076VSZJ2W' template='ProductCarousel' store='jessicanumber-20' marketplace='US' link_id='495ee95c-b48f-11e8-bc33-9d01dc62ca8c']Blog posts contain affiliate links. When you click on these links I earn a small commission that helps keep this blog running and support my coffee habit. If you have any questions, feel free to read my disclaimer and privacy policy. Thank you!