<div dir="ltr"><div><span id="gmail-docs-internal-guid-0a1fc82b-7fff-62ed-195d-855ec3ddda6f"><p style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><font color="#000000" face="arial, sans-serif"><span style="white-space-collapse: preserve;">Hello all!</span></font></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><font face="arial, sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">Western monarchs are settling in for the winter along the California coast, though 2025 is shaping up to be another low population year. As the three week mid-season </span><a href="https://westernmonarchcount.org/" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">Western Monarch Count</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> survey approaches its close this Sunday, partners and volunteers have estimated approximately 8,000 monarchs so far—a total that may place this winter as the </span><a href="https://westernmonarchcount.org/data/" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">second or third lowest on record</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">. The mid-season tally last year was 9,119 monarch butterflies. </span><span style="color:rgb(8,8,9);font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> A final tally for the 2025 mid-season count will be announced in late January.</span></font></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><font face="arial, sans-serif"><a href="https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=541" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="color:rgb(0,81,87);font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">Natural Bridges State Beach</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> and </span><a href="https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=541" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="color:rgb(0,81,87);font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">Lighthouse Field State Beach</span></a><span style="color:rgb(51,51,51);font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> </span><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">in Santa Cruz County remain this season’s strongest hotspots–with over a thousand butterflies each–and are both open for public viewing. Other popular overwintering sites that welcome visitors include </span><a href="https://www.pgmuseum.org/monarchs" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="color:rgb(0,81,87);font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">Pacific Grove Monarch Sanctuary</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> which is currently hosting about 172 monarchs, </span><a href="https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=30273" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="color:rgb(0,81,87);font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">Pismo State Beach Monarch Butterfly Grove</span></a><span style="color:rgb(51,51,51);font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> </span><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">which is currently hosting 449 monarchs, and</span><span style="color:rgb(0,81,87);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> </span><a href="https://www.cityofgoleta.org/play/parks-recreation-open-spaces/recreation-across-the-city/goleta-butterfly-grove" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="color:rgb(0,81,87);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">Goleta Butterfly Grove </span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">which is currently hosting 18 monarchs (more information about visiting monarch overwintering sites </span><a href="https://xerces.org/blog/everything-you-need-to-know-about-visiting-overwintering-monarchs" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">here</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">). In general, Southern California and the Central Coast–with the exception of Santa Cruz–continue to see unusually low numbers of monarchs. </span></font></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><font face="arial, sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(8,8,9);font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">Many factors including weather can influence monarch overwintering populations making </span><a href="https://www.xerces.org/blog/bounciness-of-butterflies" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">bouncy year-to-year fluctuations</span></a><span style="color:rgb(8,8,9);font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> the norm. Another warm summer and drought across the West, as well as the low overwintering numbers last year, have likely led to a second year in a row of depressed numbers.</span><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> Underscoring regional differences, </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/reel/1468196504278852" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">eastern monarchs overwintering in Mexico</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> appear to be faring better this season compared to last, according to early reports from partners in Mexico.</span></font></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><font face="arial, sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">The Xerces Society, Point Blue Conservation Science and Althouse & Meade are partnering with California State Parks, the City of Goleta, Santa Cruz County Parks, and other local public land managers to study monarch butterfly movement during the overwintering season of 2025-26. We are tagging overwintering monarchs with </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/17/science/monarch-butterfly-migration-tracking-sensor.html" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">new ultralight radiotags</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> at several sites along the Central Coast in order to track and better understand their movement patterns. Read more on our </span><a href="https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/eb67e9c975994de8a17b95e8290858be#ref-n-J6ggah" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">StoryMap</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">. </span></font></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><font face="arial, sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">Plus, you can now follow individual monarchs on their migration via the Cape May Point Science Center's Project Monarch App which allows your phone to act as a mini-receiver and track tagged monarchs in real time! The app is available for free in your app store for </span><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.celltracktech.projectMonarch.project_monarch&hl=en_US" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">Android</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">  and  </span><a href="https://apps.apple.com/us/app/project-monarch-science/id6460006970" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">Apple</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> devices such as cellular phones and tablets.</span></font></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><font face="arial, sans-serif"><span style="color:rgb(8,8,9);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">Continued </span><a href="https://www.xerces.org/monarchs" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">conservation efforts</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> remain essential across North America, and it’s up to all of us to keep collecting data, stewarding habitat, and advocating for policy protections that help monarch butterflies. View the Xerces Society’s </span><a href="https://xerces.org/western-monarch-call-to-action" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="background-color:transparent;font-style:italic;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline">Western Monarch Call to Action</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> </span><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">for more information on key recovery steps in the West. </span></font></p><p dir="ltr" style="text-align:center;line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:700"><font face="arial, sans-serif" style="" size="4">THANK YOU to all our partners, volunteers and funders who make the Western Monarch Count possible!</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="text-align:center;line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:700"><font face="arial, sans-serif" style="">* * * </font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><i style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif"><b>Photo by Diana Magor.</b></i><i style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif"> Monarchs cluster on eucalyptus at Moran Lake in Santa Cruz, November 28, 2025. Look closely at the right side of the cluster and you might see one of the monarchs with partially-open wings sporting a BluMorpho tag! </i>  <span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:700"><font face="arial, sans-serif" style=""></font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"><span style="border:none;display:inline-block;overflow:hidden;width:470px;height:405px"><img src="cid:ii_miql2rqa0" alt="image.jpeg" width="452" height="389"></span></span></p></span><br class="gmail-Apple-interchange-newline"></div><div><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><span><p dir="ltr" style="color:rgb(34,34,34);line-height:1.295;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;vertical-align:baseline">Isis Howard </span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;vertical-align:baseline">(she/her)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="color:rgb(34,34,34);line-height:1.295;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;vertical-align:baseline">Conservation Biologist</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="color:rgb(34,34,34);line-height:1.295;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;vertical-align:baseline">The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="color:rgb(34,34,34);line-height:1.295;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif;background-color:transparent;vertical-align:baseline"><font color="#000000">503.212.0546 | </font><a href="mailto:isis.howard@xerces.org" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank"><font color="#0000ff">isis.howard@xerces.org</font></a></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="https://xerces.org/" style="color:rgb(17,85,204)" target="_blank"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Calibri,sans-serif;background-color:transparent;vertical-align:baseline"><font color="#0000ff">xerces.org</font></span></a></p></span></div></div></div></div>