Dakota County Monarchs Program Helps Species and Migration Research

This summer, 51 monarchs were released to Lebanon Hills from the breeding operation inside the park. Of these, 33 were labeled as part of a migration study conducted by the University of Kansas. The scientific tagging program of Monarch Watch University aims to better understand the mysteries of monarch migration and habitat needs. Once they are ready to fly, each butterfly receives a small tag with a unique number. The label goes to the outside of the rear wing and does not prevent theft. If found or recaptured, the number is reported to Monarch Watch.

To date, more than 1.5 million butterflies have been tagged and more than 13,000 have been recovered.

A study conducted in 2016 showed that the monarch butterfly population had decreased by 68% over the past 22 years, mainly due to habitat loss and climate change. Here in summer, monarch eggs and young caterpillars may be eaten by many insects and arachnids. Another potential hazard is found in a milkweed desert. If there are only a few milkweed plants available to females in a given area, these few plants may end up with many more caterpillars than they can feed. When staff found caterpillars in danger of predation or lack of food resources, caterpillars were brought in to be raised in adults.

The caterpillars were reared in different pens according to their size, as they pass through five moults at the caterpillar stage, called instars. This has allowed staff to better monitor milkweed consumption and monitor any bacterial or parasitic infection. It was a group effort at the Visitor Center to find food, clean containers, check and sort caterpillars, and tag and release adults.

The public has had the opportunity throughout the season to learn about the monarch's program, and some have participated in tagging the butterflies. Dakota County Parks plans to continue the monarchs program in 2019 and expands the habitat of pollinators and monarchs at the Lebanon Hills Visitor Center, including through volunteering at the Nurture Nature event on September 29th.