Last year the population was decimating, but now the monarch butterflies are returning to winter in California
The latest report on monitoring of monarch butterflies gives hope for this species, very close to extinction until a few months ago.
Although the count official has not yet begun, in recent weeks more than 1.300 butterflies have been identified at the wintering site of Pacific Grove, California, and an additional 8.000 have been counted in adjacent sites.
Last year, not a single butterfly was sighted in the Pacific Grove wintering area, while in the Monarch Butterfly Grove - where there are usually tens of thousands from October to February - there were fewer than three hundred.
Read also: Monarch butterflies on the verge of extinction: the lowest number of specimens has been reached
How come monarch butterflies last year looked like one step away from extinction while today they are on the rise? According to experts, as with the populations of many other insects, the numbers of monarch butterflies can also vary from year to year in relation to temperatures, rainfall, availability of resources and other factors. Probably last year the environmental conditions were unfavorable, so as to decimate the populations.
Also read: Butterflies are disappearing in the United States due to warmer autumn temperatures
The draft monitoring Western Monarch Thanksgiving Count will officially start on November 13 thanks to the work of hundreds of volunteers who, like every year, will count the number of butterflies monarchs who overwinter in the groves of the Pacific coast of California and northern Baja.
For the moment, the data looks encouraging, but there is no need to let your guard down. Conservation projects for monarch butterflies must continue and plans to restore habitat for butterflies need to be approved and funded so that thousands can return to winter in these areas. Each citizen can then contribute to protecting them from extinction, for example by planting native flowers that bloom in autumn so that the butterflies have the precious nectar at their disposal.
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Reference source: Western Monarch Count
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