In a report released this week from the World Wildlife Fund Mexico (WWF), scientists determined monarchs occupied 2.84 hectares in December 2021, a modest increase from the 2.10 hectares occupied in December 2020. The report notes the 35% increase in monarch butterfly overwintering population numbers between 2020 and 2021 gives some reason for hope given […]
One of the many requests the world makes to farmers and other land managers is restoring pollinator populations by implementing pollinator-friendly conservation practices on their lands. This month, we share a conservation principle that we hope lightens the burden on farm managers: simply stop mowing, at least during the month of May. Last year, we […]
There are a host of stewardship practices deployed by farmers throughout the year that boost crop health and yield while also protecting monarchs and other pollinators. One of those practices that bears particular attention during planting season is the proper management of treated seeds. The Guide to Seed Treatment Stewardship provides guidelines for managing treated […]
The western monarch population saw an extraordinary rebound in 2021, according to overwintering count totals recently released by the Xerces Society. The 2021 Western Monarch Thanksgiving Count tallied 247,237 monarchs, a significant increase from the previous year’s count, which came in at just under 2,000. The 2021 count is the highest tally since 2016 and […]
The official 2021 western monarch tally will not be known until early 2022 but early observations indicate a promising rebound for these monarch populations. “Nature has given us a second chance,” Emma Pelton, a biologist with the Xerces Society, told NPR last month. Farmers for Monarchs detailed earlier this year the alarmingly low 2020 western […]
The migratory generation of monarchs that departs for their overwintering grounds each fall relies on late season wildflowers to fuel their flight. While sitting at a fast food drive thru in Prince William County, Virginia, earlier this month, one of our Farmers for Monarchs members spotted dozens of migrating monarchs refueling on the nectar of […]
Last month, Farmers for Monarchs detailed how the monarch migration is an awe-inspiring feat of nature – its complexity demonstrates how vulnerable but yet resilient this amazing insect is. The multi-generational migration cycle relies on a chain of well-timed events, the success of which dramatically decreases when just one link in the chain is disrupted. […]
The membership of the Monarch Collaborative includes organizations representing farmers, ranchers, and land owners; businesses working along the agricultural supply chain; researchers and academic institutions; federal and state entities; and conservation organizations. Wayne Fredericks is one such member. He is a corn and soybean farmer from Osage, Iowa who has served on the Iowa Soybean […]
In a recent report from the World Wildlife Fund Mexico, scientists noted a 26% decrease in monarch butterfly overwintering population numbers in southern overwintering sites. It is estimated that 6 hectares of hibernating monarchs are required to maintain a sustainable eastern monarch population. This report revealed that monarchs occupied only 2.10 hectares, compared to […]
Fewer than 2,000 monarch butterflies were counted in California’s overwintering sites this year, a dire indication for the viability of the western migration. The annual Western Monarch Thanksgiving Count surveyed 246 sites with only 1,914 total monarchs counted. Western monarch populations saw previous all-time low counts in 2018 and 2019, with only 30,000 monarchs those […]