Tracking a monarch's epic journey


Alison Langley

By Alison Langley, Niagara Falls Review

Thursday, September 10, 2015 4:08:05 EDT PM

The Niagara Parks Butterfly conservatory will host Majestic Monarchs on Saturday Sept. 12, 2015, to raise awareness of the plight of the Monarch butterfly. The event will help track the Monarch's epic voyage to a winter roosting site in the Sierre Madre mountains of Mexico.

Thousands of monarch butterflies will soon migrate from their Ontario summer home to a winter roosting site in the Sierre Madre mountains of Mexico.

Many will not survive the arduous 3,000 kilometre trip.

In addition to avoiding being eaten by predators or falling victim to sudden changes in temperature and weather, the insects main challenge in completing their journey is habitat loss.

"A lot of their natural habitat - wildflowers and nectar sources and larvae host plants - are disappearing," said Mandin Tomlinson, an entomology technician at the Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory.

"A lot of the natural lands are being converted into agriculture."

The use of chemicals in agriculture is also a threat to the delicate butterflies.

"Just like with bees, the use of chemicals can really effect butterfly populations."

To help track the monarch's epic voyage, the butterfly conservatory is giving residents an opportunity to become citizen scientists.

The conservatory will host Majestic Monarchs on Saturday to raise awareness of the plight of the Monarchs.

A number of butterflies will be tagged with tiny stickers featuring a code number.

The insects will then be released into the Botanical Gardens to begin their migration and their progress will be monitored by Monarch Watch, an organization out of the University of Kansas.

This is the eighth year the conservatory has participated in the Monarch Watch program.

The event includes displays and demonstrations that will focus on the unique stages of a butterfly's life as they transform from caterpillars into chrysalis and later Monarchs.

Guests can also check out the new Legacy Prairie Garden, a combination of different ecosystems designed to attract butterflies and other pollinators.

"It's all native habitat," explained Charles Hunter, superintendent of the Botanical Gardens, School of Horticulture and the conservatory.

"It is only two years old and it's already flourishing," he said.

The garden features more than 100 plants and flowers, including tallgrass, alvar and milkweed.

What

Majestic Monarchs

Where

Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory

When

Saturday, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

www.niagaraparks.com, www.monarchwatch.com