[Pollinator] Number of Monarchs Overwintering in California Remains Low

[Matthew Shepherd]

Good morning everyone,



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 Western Monarch Thanksgiving Count
<http://www.westernmonarchcount.org/>, the annual assessment of the number
of monarchs overwintering along the California coast. With a total of less
than 300,000 butterflies <http://www.westernmonarchcount.org/data/>, 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 74% decline in the
California overwintering population
<http://www.xerces.org/state-of-the-monarch-butterfly-overwintering-sites-in-california/>
.



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.”



The Western Monarch Thanksgiving Count marked its 20th 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 brief
history of the WMTC
<http://www.xerces.org/blog/western-monarch-conservation-a-40-year-history/>,
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.



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.



An article on our blog about the count:

http://www.xerces.org/blog/the-western-monarch-thanksgiving-count-at-20-a-record-volunteer-effort-but-disappointing-butterfly-numbers/



The press release about this year’s count:

http://www.xerces.org/2017/02/07/number-of-monarchs-overwintering-in-california-remains-low/



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,* State of the Monarch
Butterfly Overwintering Sites in California*

http://www.xerces.org/state-of-the-monarch-butterfly-overwintering-sites-in-california/



A report about the *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/



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.



Matthew









­----------



Matthew Shepherd

Communications Director



[image: Xerces-logo-CMYK-email_Outlook]



Protecting the Life That Sustains Us



Connect:    www.xerces.org      Facebook
<https://www.facebook.com/xerces.society/>     Twitter
<https://twitter.com/xercessociety>     Instagram
<https://www.instagram.com/xercessociety/?hl=en>     Blog
<http://www.xerces.org/blog/>     E-newsletter
<https://visitor.r20.constantcontact.com/manage/optin?v=001HTk7N6nZumLPinBr8VACbNdTXCe732bGu6KpqC13JAKPti_HBe5xyr7t0p4mDfKe2dOsd-TB1qvv772s6GQfVa_SbKKfwBiwl4blH4KvCjq4dpmA2M9UNZ2axlQwu_1Gvjrl2Rb53WUZwsddwCzyorgxedLAaMy3>

628 NE Broadway, Suite 200,   Portland, OR 97232,   USA

Office: (503) 232-6639 x110

Cell: (503) 807-1577

matthew.shepherd at xerces.org
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.sonic.net/pipermail/pollinator/attachments/20170208/e0760cc3/attachment.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image003.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 35341 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://lists.sonic.net/pipermail/pollinator/attachments/20170208/e0760cc3/attachment.jpg>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: image006.jpg
Type: image/jpeg
Size: 3000 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://lists.sonic.net/pipermail/pollinator/attachments/20170208/e0760cc3/attachment-0001.jpg>