Environs

By Sara Hall

SAVE THE MONARCH

The monarch, arguably America’s most beloved butterfly, is in trouble.

A spotlight has recently shined on the imperiled pollinators after an international conservation organization placed the iconic insect on its endangered list following decades of declining population numbers. Locally, groups and businesses have campaigned to help bring the migrating monarch back to the California coast. A Laguna Beach-based nonprofit, the Pollinator Protection Fund, is dedicated to the protection and rehabilitation of monarch butterflies and the preservation and creation of monarch butterfly and pollinator habitats in Southern California.

The organization’s aim is to educate through interpretive signage, community outreach talks, gardening days and volunteer work, said PPF Managing Director Laura Ford in an email to Tableau. “We create beautiful pollinator habitat to enrich the environment for both people and pollinators,” she said. “Our work is vital in creating pesticide free safe habitats for pollinators to live, feed and reproduce.”

The monarch butterfly population, particularly those in the western half of the U.S., is in trouble, said Ron Vanderhoff, general manager/ V.P. of Roger’s Gardens in Newport Beach, in an email to Tableau. “An insect so common just 30 years ago is now a fraction of its former abundance,” he said.

The California population was estimated at 4.5 million in the 1980s. The numbers declined to about 1.2 million in 1997, to fewer than 30,000 in 2019, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. During the winter of 2020-21, volunteers counted less than 2,000 adult monarchs in the entire state.

Orange County once had several thousand monarch butterflies roosting along the coast, from Seal Beach to San Clemente, said Vanderhoff, who assists with the annual fall and winter monarch census in the OC.

In 1997, more than 4,300 monarchs were counted. In the winter of 2020-21, at OC’s 17 historical wintering sites, volunteers counted just one adult monarch. “It’s serious; monarchs need help,” Vanderhoff said. Pollinators in general have seen a steep decline in recent years due to modern agricultural practices such as the overuse of pesticides and use of neonicotinoids, removal of habitat and monarch butterfly overwintering habitats, and lack of native milkweeds foodplants. “The cause of this incredible decline in monarch numbers is not from one factor, and no single solution exists,” Vanderhoff explained. “It’s complicated, and most experts list a mixture of causes.” Although there has been some positive news recently that gives hope to the struggling population. In 2021, the Xerces Society, which focuses on the conservation of invertebrates and their habitats, reported a surprising 247,237 monarch butterflies observed across western overwintering sites. These numbers signal the possibility of a rebound, however, the population is still drastically lower than the millions migrating just a few decades ago and remains in serious danger. This summer, the International Union for Conservation of Nature declared the migratory Western Monarch population endangered. IUCN is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources.

Although a significant step, the July 21 announcement doesn’t have any policy or regulations impact for conservation in the United States. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service holds that power and FWS has not listed the monarch butterfly as an endangered species. “The IUCN declaration is terrific, but unfortunately it has been a bit misrepresented in the media. In the U.S., a species is not endangered until Fish and Wildlife says so,” Vanderhoff said. “The IUCN is a wellrespected international, science based, conservation organization. However, with no regulatory power, it has limited influence in the United States.”

The FWS declaring them endangered is the action that the monarch conservation community is really waiting for, he noted. “When this happens monies will become available, regulations will begin and the real conservation will get underway to save this species,” he explained. In 2020, FWS found that adding the monarch butterfly to the list of threatened and endangered species was “warranted but precluded” by work on higher-priority listing actions. With this decision, the monarch becomes a candidate for listing under the Endangered Species Act, and its status will be reviewed each year until it is no longer a candidate. “Basically, they said, yes the western monarch is endangered, but we don’t have the resources to deal with it and have other species that we need to work on first,” Vanderhoff explained. “Until the Fish and Wildlife Service adds it to the U.S. Endangered Species List, we are still without the full set of tools and the resources needed to conserve this iconic creature.”

They are worthy of our protection because the monarch butterflies offer the world their iconic beauty and so much more, Ford noted.

“The pollinator population of an area is a great indicator of the overall health of an ecosystem,” she pointed out. “It’s vital that we protect pollinators if we wish to live on a planet that continues to sustain us and is hospitable to life.” Some of the same sound conservation and environmental decisions that will help monarchs will also benefit many other wild creatures as well, Vanderhoff added.

“Habitat must be restored, expanded and preserved, foodplants must be protected, planted and encouraged, pesticides must be reduced, and commercial agricultural practices must be altered,” he explained. “Healthy habitats are critical.”

These winged beauties also play a crucial role in the country’s food and agriculture. In the United States, one-third of all agricultural output depends on pollinators, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. They are vital to the production of healthy crops for food, fibers, edible oils, medicines, and other products. Consider their amazing migration. They migrate from all over the United States and southern Canada to their winter grounds in Mexico and coastal California, Ford explained. Western monarchs gather to roost in eucalyptus, Monterey cypress, Monterey pine, and other trees in groves along the pacific coastline, arriving around late October.

“Their tiny bodies, which weigh less than a paperclip, fly thousands of miles – across multiple generations – to make their final destinations,” Ford said. “The western population of monarch butterflies that visit us in Southern California travel huge distances defying all manner of obstacles and dangers.” Similar inspiring journeys of monarchs defying the odds to fly between their summer breeding grounds and their winter habitat can be found across the United States. They travel from as far south as Mexico to as far north as Canada. The eastern and western populations might even mingle if they cross paths near the Rocky Mountains. During this great migration, monarchs are powerful pollinators. While bees are the primary pollinators in the U.S., birds, bats, and beetles are often overlooked for how much pollinating work they put in. Together, along with butterflies, they pollinate much of the food we eat and support healthy ecosystems that clean the air, stabilize soils, protect from severe weather, and support other wildlife. “The almost invisible ecosystem service provided by pollinators is an incredibly precious resource that requires our understanding, attention and support,” Ford said.

There are a number of ways people can help out the monarch butterflies and other pollinators. It’s an interesting situation, but also a huge opportunity, Vanderhoff noted.

“Unlike most species that might be in peril, the monarch is in our own backyards (or at least should be),” he said. “This isn’t about some animal that we seldom ever see, that lives in a mountain canyon or some area far away. This is an animal in which we, gardeners, play a significant role. Our actions in our own gardens can either help monarch recovery – or not. We, gardeners, can actually do something.” Planting California native milkweed in the garden at home is a good step. “Home gardens can and do attract many different pollinators,” Ford said. “If you want more monarchs in your garden make it easy for them to find the milkweed to lay their eggs on.” Ford suggested placing it apart from other plants or surround it with a mulch circle. She also recommended planting native flowers in clusters – blues and purples for bees and orange and red for butterflies and hummingbirds – and chose flora with a variety of bloom times to ensure that there’s always food available for pollinators. Placing rocks or flat stones to absorb the sun’s heat and act as a resting space for monarchs. A small pan or dish filled with coarse sand and dampened with water will act as a drinking and mineral source. Vanderhoff suggesting setting aside a portion of your own garden specifically to support native wildlife,

such as native pollinators, birds, lizards, bugs and so on. Direct some of that garden attention specifically toward monarch butterflies, he said.

“In particular, add some locally native milkweed to your garden and remove any bright orange tropical milkweed. Then, add nectar producing plants to your garden, especially those that flower in the winter, while monarchs are resting locally,” he said. The more generic tropical milkweed (not native to the U.S., but commonly found in commercial garden shops) works, but it needs to be significantly cut back after the leaves have been eaten by the caterpillars in order to reduce the risk of transmitting a debilitating parasite that can live in abundance on tropical milkweed, but can deform and kill the monarchs.

The Xerces Society recommends only planting locally native milkweed species, and do not recommend planting tropical milkweed. Gardeners can receive one free native, narrow-leaf milkweed plant, when a tropical milkweed is removed and brought to Roger’s Gardens. Also at Roger’s Gardens, fans of the fluttering insect can show support for the research and education needed to help recover monarch butterflies by visiting store, donating $5, writing a wish on a wooden monarch, and hanging it on the Garden’s “wishing tree.” The local shop has already raised more than $5,000 toward their $7,000 goal, which will be donated to the Xerces Society. But first and foremost, nature lovers who want to protect the butterflies and other pollinators should learn more about their plight. “The first thing to do – the easiest thing to do – is to notice and think about monarch butterflies and other pollinators,” Ford said. “Awareness and appreciation in itself is a good start.” Carefully research through science-based websites, Vanderhoff suggested, and then talk about the issue and share what you’ve learned with others. Lobby for good ecological and conservation practices in general, he added. Vanderhoff agreed it’s important to learn the issues. It’s not enough to just preach “Save the monarchs,” he said, “we need to act intelligently and in a scientifically appropriate manner.” For more information, visit protectmonarchs.com, rogersgardens.com/pages/milkweeds-for-monarchs, and xerces.org.

LAST LOOK

Sherry Pollack Walker Fancy Glass II

Oil, 12x12

For more information, visit the artist's website at www.SherryPollackW.com