Monarch Butterflies in Western North America in Jeopardy

Emma PeltonPosted on January 17, 2019 Posted in News

Population of monarchs overwintering in California at lowest level ever recorded

Media Contacts:

Emma Pelton, Endangered Species Conservation Biologist; [email protected], (971) 533-7245

Sarina Jepsen, Endangered Species Program Director; [email protected], (971) 244-3727

PORTLAND, Ore.; Thursday, 1/17/19—The population of monarch butterflies overwintering in California has fallen to the lowest level ever recorded. Surveys done by volunteers with the Western Monarch Thanksgiving Count found only 28,429 butterflies, an 85.2% fall from the previous year—and a 99.4% decline from the number of monarchs in the state in the 1980s. The results of the count were released Thursday by the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, along with a Western Monarch Call to Action.

Read the full announcement here.

About the Western Monarch Count

The Western Monarch Count is a community science program through the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. You can read more about it here.

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