Monarch Butterfly Workbook for Kids / Sand Creek Greenway

Monarch BUTTERFLY

THE MONARCH BUTTERFLY IS ONE OF NORTH AMERICA'S MOST ICONIC POLLINTOR SPECIES.

Sand Creek Regional Greenway Partnership 7350 E. 29th Ave Suite 300 Denver, CO 80238 (303) 468-3263 www.sandcreekgreenway.org

Many butterflies have host plants they lay their eggs on.

For monarchs that plant is the Milkweed plant!

The female will only lay eggs on milkweed.

The monarch egg is as big as the tip of a pen. Usually there is only one egg per plant.

CAN YOU FIND THE EGG ON THE MILKWEED PLANT?

Once the egg hatches, the caterpillar will live on the milkweed plant.

The monarch caterpillar will only eat the leaves of the milkweed.

The toxins in the milkweed plant make the caterpillar and butterfly poisonous.

DRAW YOUR OWN MONARCH CATERPILLAR

After the caterpillar finishes feeding, it spins a silk mat, and hangs upside down from a twig.

They stay as a chrysalis for 914 days.

COLOR THE CHRYSALIS

After two weeks the butterfly emerges from the chrysalis.

Before the butterfly can fly, it must pump its wings with blood to make them strong!

The wingspan of a full-grown monarch can reach 5 inches.

CIRCLE THE COLORS OF THE MONARCH BUTTERFLY

Every fall, when the weather gets chilly, the monarch leaves its home in Canada and the United States

And flies more than 2,000 miles south

To warmer climates like Southern California and Central Mexico

CAN YOU HELP THIS MONARCH MIGRATE FROM CANADA TO MEXICO?

Draw your own butterfly and make it whatever color you'd like

Welcome back, butterflies!

DON'T WORRY! THE MONARCH MAKES IT WAY BACK TO CANADA AND THE UNITED STATES EVERY SUMMER WHEN IT IS WARM AGAIN!

Milkweed on the Sand Creek Regional Greenway The Sand Creek Regional Greenway is the perfect habitat for the monarch butterfly!

Bluff Lake Nature Center

Bluff Lake Nature Center is a wildlife classroom and a nature refuge and has special rules for visiting (no pets, no bicycles) to protect the wildlife. Their biggest milkweed patch is in and around the parking lot. You can also find milkweed along the trail by the amphitheater.

Star K Ranch

Star K Ranch in Aurora, is a great place to visit when searching for milkweed and monarch butterflies.

Trails through Star K connect to the Sand Creek Greenway and the High Line Canal. The boardwalk bridge next to the wetland pond is the best spot in Star K Ranch to look for milkweed.

Use this guide to help you explore where milkweed and monarch might be along the greenway!

Smith Road Trailhead

If in the north east Denver area, the Smith Road Trailhead is the perfect place to start your search for milkweed and monarch butterflies.

From the trailhead, head west and look in the vegetation along the creek side.

Remember, when looking for butterflies, stay on the trail and don't touch wildlife.

Commerce City Wetlands

The Commerce City Wetlands is a rare restoration success story in an industrial jungle. The small loop around the wetland offers a 360° opportunity to find milkweed and monarchs.

As of 2018, the monarch population is just 1% of what it was in 1980. Which means for every 160 monarch butterflies then, there is only one left today.

SAVE THE MONARCH BUTTERFLY The population numbers are down due to:

Climate change

Habitat loss Decline in milkweed

Lack of nectar sources

Sta ti stics on monarch population decline from the

How can you help?

You can create a safe habitat for monarchs by making and dispersing milkweed seed balls!

All you need is: • Non-dyed, non-toxic clay (either powdered or prepared, available at craft stores) • Organic soil or compost • Water • Milkweed seeds Make the Balls: • Mix 2 parts clay to 1 part soil (prepare to get a little dirty) • Slowly add water until it looks like playdoh • Roll round balls about the size of quarter • Poke a dent in each ball with your finger and insert 2-3 seeds • Cover the seeds and roll the ball round again • Dry for a few hours until hard How to plant them: Milkweed seeds need a cold snap to help the seeds grow • Toss the seed balls into your yard during late fall or through the winter.

• Or save them in a cold, dry area, like your freezer, for a few weeks (2-3 months works best) and toss them out in early spring.

• The seeds will get water and sun from the environment.

• Sit back and watch your plants grow!