Monarch WaystationThis week, I got my garden registered as a Monarch Waystation. I already have my garden listed as a Certified Wildlife Habitat, and this was the next step I wanted to complete.
The Monarch Waystation program was created by Monarch Watch, a nonprofit education, conservation, and research program based at the University of Kansas that focuses on the monarch butterfly, it's habitat, and the fall migration (monarchwatch.org). Monarch Waystations are habitats that provide food, shelter, and a place to reproduce and lay eggs for monarch butterflies. The monarch butterfly, Danaus plexippus, is a butterfly species native to North and South America. It is a large, orange butterfly with dark veins and white spots at the edges. On July 21st, 2022, the migratory monarch butterfly was placed on the ICUN Red List of Threatened Species as endangered. In the last two decades, monarch butterfly populations have decreased by 85%. They are threatened by climate change, pesticides, and habitat loss as a result of urban development and farming. The monarch butterfly will only lay it's eggs on one plant, milkweed. The larvae, once hatched, will spend their days feeding on the milkweed leaves until it is time to form a chrysalis. Once the adult butterfly emerges from the chrysalis, it will either live 2-6 weeks, or migrate to Mexico and live up to 9 months, depending on the time of the year. Milkweed plants are disappearing across the country, and so are the monarchs. Last year, I bought and planted several milkweed plants in my garden. At the end of the summer, a monarch butterfly laid its eggs on the milkweed, and I got to watch the caterpillars grow and eventually turn into butterflies. This week, I registered my garden as a Monarch Waystation. I had to visit the Monarch Watch website, where I then filled out an application and paid an application fee to get my garden certified. I also purchased a metal garden sign to identify my garden as an official Waystation. The profits will be used to help support Monarch Watch's conservation efforts.
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