Their signature bright orange wings with black borders and veins have adorned colorful flowers and gardens throughout the world for millions of years. Their striped caterpillars (larvae) with voracious appetites for milkweed, their only food source, have entertained school-children as they watched them grow exponentially in a matter of days. Their green chysalides with gold speckles rival any sparkling jewel. Their annual migration where they fly thousands of miles to warmer climates is a phenomenon that continues to fascinate scientists. Even just a generation ago, monarch butterflies were plentiful in Utah during the summer months. 

Today, monarch sightings are rare and the beautiful species is dangerously close to becoming extinct.  

“There was never a spring at Kaysville Elementary growing up when we did not have four – five milkweed stems in class waiting for a caterpillar to complete its metamorphosis,” said Nephi Harvey of Kaysville. “Even though we still have milkweed all over the farm I rarely see a chrysalis anymore.” 

“We had tons of milkweed at the bottom of what now is 200 North,” said Cricket Harvey-Longaker of Kaysville. “We would throw it out to seed. In 15 years, we never saw a caterpillar but we would have a couple of butterflies come through every year. It was nothing like growing up. We would be eating breakfast and my mom, a first-grade teacher, would tell us to go grab a caterpillar and some milkweed for her class. It was that easy to grab it between breakfast and leaving for school. It makes me sad.”

Scientists and conservation organizations track the monarch population based on the count of butterflies that make it to their overwintering sites. Monarchs east of the Rocky Mountains typically migrate to Mexico. Monarchs west of the Rocky Mountains, such as Utah monarchs, typically migrate to California. On Jan. 19, 2021, Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation reported only 1,914 western monarch butterflies were recorded overwintering in California during their Thanksgiving 2020 count. Just a year prior, they reported 21,944 western monarchs. This constitutes a 90%+ population decline in only 12 months. Even more breathtaking is in 2016, the count was 167,582. In 1997, the count was 1.2 million.

The sharp decline in the monarch butterfly population over the past 25 years is due to many factors. Xerces’ website said, “The monarch faces many threats including the loss of milkweed and other flowering plants across its range, degradation and loss of overwintering groves in both coastal California and Mexico, and the widespread use of pesticides in the environment. Many of these stressors are exacerbated by the effects of climate change.”

            Despite these dismal numbers, monarch enthusiasts and citizen scientists remain optimistic and contribute what they can to help save the monarch butterfly. Many people across the globe plant milkweed and colorful flowers in their yards hoping for monarchs to visit and for females to lay eggs on their milkweed plants. A female typically lays 400 – 500 eggs. Since the eggs and tiny larvae are susceptible to predators and pesticides, many people bring the eggs and caterpillars indoors where they rear them on a diet of fresh milkweed. They can then witness the various stages or instars of caterpillar growth including the formation of a chrysalis and the ultimate moment when a monarch butterfly ecloses. From egg to butterfly the entire process takes about 21 – 33 days. Warmer temperatures shorten the time span. 

After a butterfly emerges, they are typically released into the wild where they can feed on the nectar of flowering plants and find a mate to start the process all over again if they are a breeding generation. Rachel Taylor of Salt Lake City and Research Associate for Southwest Monarch Study, is the admin for the Facebook group, “Monarchs of The Wasatch Front Utah.” Taylor educates Utahns about the monarch butterfly, provides training on how to plant a monarch way station or habitat in your yard, how to raise monarch caterpillars from eggs, and how to tag butterflies so scientists can continue to track their migration patterns and population counts. 

One of the easiest ways to contribute is to plant native milkweed and flowers. In Utah the most common native milkweed varieties are Showy milkweed (Asclepias speciosa) and Swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata). Milkweed seeds are easily harvested from mature plants at the end of the summer so monarch enthusiasts are happy to share their seeds for free. 

“We help by planting a few stems of milkweed in our yards, or by creating full ‘Monarch Way Stations’ in yards and in city and county parks and open spaces,” Taylor said. “We also participate in tagging the monarch during the migration season, courtesy of Southwest Monarch Study. Monarchs arrive in northern Utah in mid-late May, stay and reproduce until mid-September when the migration begins and they start heading south for the winter, heading either to the California coast or all the way to Mexico.” 

After learning how essential milkweed is for monarchs, Melayne Braithewaite of Kaysville is planning on planting a butterfly garden in her yard this year. “I love the monarch butterflies. If I can help, I am doing it!” she said. Caleb Stroh of Kaysville added, “Gardening for wildlife is great fun, and planting native milkweed is an adventure! Our milkweed garden is always ‘a-buzz’ with activity and one of our favorite garden areas to visit.”

  If you are interested in raising monarchs from eggs, Taylor encourages us to do so responsibly using best practices that members in the Facebook group “Monarchs of the Wasatch Front” share. This article is also helpful:  https://monarchwatch.org/rear/. Other resources for monarch education in Utah is the Western Monarch Advocates website:  www.westernmonarchadvocates.com and Southwest Monarch Study www.swmonarchs.org.