Preserving the Monarch Butterfly
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Preserving the Monarch Butterfly is one of the featured projects of our MGC President. Preserving the Monarch ButterflyWhat can we do to preserve the monarch?
• The host plant for the monarch
pupae is milkweed (Asclepias syriaca).
 This is the only food source
for the pupae stage.
• Road crews who mow the grass
in the median of our highways are
destroying this plant, as are others
who are uninformed as to why this
plant is so important.
• Other environmental factors are
also destroying the plants.
• This has to stop if we want the
monarch to survive.
• We need to include this plant in
our gardens. What, a weed in my
garden, you ask? Yes, a good weed
in our gardens.
• What a thrill to see the caterpillar
eating and growing, spinning into
a chrysalis and then emerging as a
beautiful monarch butterfly.
• Plant a butterfly garden in your
yard or in a schoolyard.
• Work closely with children in planting
this garden.
• Produce a book of evidence for the award.
Gardeners, we have to work to “Conserve to Preserve” our most precious environment.
Together we can make a difference, one garden club member, one garden club, one rain garden and
one native plant at a time. - Dolores Stouwie, MGC President Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus)
The monarch butterfly is a common insect that lives throughout Minnesota during the summer. It's seen in backyards, parks, and in rural areas. Its large size, wide range, and bright orange and black wings make it one of Minnesota's most well-known insects.
Identification
General description: The monarch butterfly is easy to see. It has bright orange wings with black veins and white spots.
Length: 3 to 4.5 inches.
Weight: Less than one ounce.
Color: Orange and black.
Reproduction
Monarchs develop first as an egg, continue to grow as a caterpillar, and finally emerge as a butterfly. Growing from an egg to a butterfly takes about one month. In the spring, Minnesota monarchs that have wintered in Mexico, fly north laying eggs on milkweed plants there or in southern states. Then the adult dies. One month later, the young butterflies head to Minnesota.
Food
The nectar of various flowering plants. Monarch larvae eat only milkweed.
Predators
 Birds and other animals.
Habitat and range
Monarchs live in fields and parks where milkweed and native plants are common. Because monarchs feed on flowering plants, many homeowners are converting portions their backyards from grass to flowers to help the butterfly population. Each fall, tens of millions of monarchs, including those from Minnesota, migrate to wintering grounds west of Mexico City.
Population and management
Researchers believe as many as 50 million monarchs migrate south each fall. To help the population, homeowners should plant flowering plants rather than grass or shrubs.
Fun facts
A male monarch can be distinguished from a female by the presence of a black scent gland on each hind wing.
Further information is available at www.monarchbutterflyusa.com/Cycle.htm
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