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--></style></head><body lang="EN-US" link="#0563C1" vlink="#954F72"><div class="WordSection1"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">Good morning everyone,</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">I know that there are a lot of monarch enthusiasts on this list, and many of you are no doubt keenly awaiting overwintering estimates from Mexico. I don’t have that figure to share but today the Xerces Society is releasing the results of the <a href="http://www.westernmonarchcount.org/">Western Monarch Thanksgiving Count</a>, the annual assessment of the number of monarchs overwintering along the California coast. With a total of <a href="http://www.westernmonarchcount.org/data/">less than 300,000 butterflies</a>, this year’s count shows that the monarch population remains low. To give some perspective, this number is less than a quarter of the population in the 1990s, and an analysis of the WMTC data documented a <a href="http://www.xerces.org/state-of-the-monarch-butterfly-overwintering-sites-in-california/">74% decline in the California overwintering population</a>.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">As Sarina Jepsen, Xerces’ Endangered Species program director, noted: “Monarch butterfly populations are far from recovered. We will still need a focused effort to address the many threats that monarchs face—from pesticide use and habitat loss to climate change and disease.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">The Western Monarch Thanksgiving Count marked its 20<sup>th</sup> anniversary this year. Begun in 1997, the count has become one of the longest-running and most significant insect citizen science projects in the U.S. (read a <a href="http://www.xerces.org/blog/western-monarch-conservation-a-40-year-history/">brief history of the WMTC</a>, written by Robert Michael Pyle, on our blog). This year, over 100 volunteers monitored a record 253 sites, the single greatest effort since the count began. We thank the amazing volunteers for their enthusiasm and hard work, and for their dedication to the remarkable monarch. A special thanks goes to Mia Monroe, one of the count’s founders, who has been the heart of the project for two decades. Mia has spent countless hours organizing, training and inspiring others. She inspires us every year.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">I feel a bit like a school teacher assigning homework, but here are some more things you can read that will explain more about the WMTC, give more details of this year’s results, and discuss the state of the monarch population and overwintering sites in California.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">An article on our blog about the count:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><a href="http://www.xerces.org/blog/the-western-monarch-thanksgiving-count-at-20-a-record-volunteer-effort-but-disappointing-butterfly-numbers/">http://www.xerces.org/blog/the-western-monarch-thanksgiving-count-at-20-a-record-volunteer-effort-but-disappointing-butterfly-numbers/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">The press release about this year’s count:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><a href="http://www.xerces.org/2017/02/07/number-of-monarchs-overwintering-in-california-remains-low/">http://www.xerces.org/2017/02/07/number-of-monarchs-overwintering-in-california-remains-low/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">A report about the condition of the overwintering sites and the analysis of 20 years of WMTC data documenting a 74% decline in the California overwintering population since the late 1990s,<i> State of the Monarch Butterfly Overwintering Sites in California</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><a href="http://www.xerces.org/state-of-the-monarch-butterfly-overwintering-sites-in-california/">http://www.xerces.org/state-of-the-monarch-butterfly-overwintering-sites-in-california/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">A report about the <i>Conservation Status and Ecology of the Monarch Butterfly in the United States</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><a href="http://www.xerces.org/conservation-status-and-ecology-of-the-monarch-butterfly-in-the-united-states/">http://www.xerces.org/conservation-status-and-ecology-of-the-monarch-butterfly-in-the-united-states/</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">Thanks again to all the people who participated in or helped organize the WMTC. None of this would be possible without them. And thank you to all of you reading this who care about the future of the monarch and who take action to help this beloved butterfly.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">Matthew</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><img border="0" width="676" height="399" id="Picture_x0020_2" src="cid:image003.jpg@01D281E8.F68B3640"></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">----------</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">Matthew Shepherd</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">Communications Director</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt"><img border="0" width="128" height="48" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image006.jpg@01D281E8.F68B3640" alt="Xerces-logo-CMYK-email_Outlook"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">Protecting the Life That Sustains Us</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">Connect: </span><a href="http://www.xerces.org/"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">www.xerces.org</span></a><span style="font-size:10.0pt"> </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/xerces.society/"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">Facebook</span></a><span style="font-size:10.0pt"> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/xercessociety"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">Twitter</span></a><span style="font-size:10.0pt"> </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/xercessociety/?hl=en"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">Instagram</span></a><span style="font-size:10.0pt"> </span><a href="http://www.xerces.org/blog/"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">Blog</span></a><span style="font-size:10.0pt"> </span><a href="https://visitor.r20.constantcontact.com/manage/optin?v=001HTk7N6nZumLPinBr8VACbNdTXCe732bGu6KpqC13JAKPti_HBe5xyr7t0p4mDfKe2dOsd-TB1qvv772s6GQfVa_SbKKfwBiwl4blH4KvCjq4dpmA2M9UNZ2axlQwu_1Gvjrl2Rb53WUZwsddwCzyorgxedLAaMy3"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">E-newsletter</span></a><span style="font-size:10.0pt"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">628 NE Broadway, Suite 200, Portland, OR 97232, USA</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">Office: (503) 232-6639 x110</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">Cell: (503) 807-1577</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="mailto:matthew.shepherd@xerces.org"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">matthew.shepherd@xerces.org</span></a><span style="font-size:10.0pt"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"> </p></div></body></html>