HEARTWOOD CHAPTER

This is yet another article about the devastating blow the Monarch butterfly species has taken this past year.  If you haven't heard yet, you haven't been listening to the news or reading internet news sources.

If the drought in Texas wasn't bad enough, the heavy rains and snows in Mexico gave another devastating blow to the Monarchs.  Due to additional habitat destruction the Monarchs did not have sufficient forest cover to protect many from the freezing temperatures and wet conditions.

Several Monarchs experts including Chip Taylor of Monarch Watch are reporting that in some areas 50% to 80% the Monarch butterflies did not survive the winter.

There is some good news in this, the Monarchs are migrating north again thru Texas where there are many wildflowers blooming and nice supplies of milkweed.

However, even with this, the experts are not sure how many Monarchs are migrating north, so it hard for them to determine what the impact of the weather and habitat loss this past year had on the Monarch butterfly.  Can the Monarchs have a good spring and recover this year?

Texas is a very important state for the Monarch butterfly and collecting data about this icon species is very valuable.

So, what can you do to help.   Plant milkweed and schedule lawn mowings to give Monarch caterpilars an extra resource and better chance of making it to an adult butterfly stage.

Linda C.