News

US Department of Interior pushes back deadline for monarch listing final decision

The US Department of Interior has pushed back the deadline for the final monarch listing decision. In its recent agency rule list, the department designated the monarch listing decision as a “long-term action” meaning that it is unlikely that a final decision will be made in the next 12 months. This pushes back the final decision to a fall 2026 date at the earliest.

Summary of monarch roosting sites across Iowa

Iowans reported 30 monarch roosting sites during this year’s fall migration! Combining reports from landowners and Journey North allowed us to assess timing of migration, tree selection, and landscape characteristics.

Seed balls vs seed paper: Which community conservation efforts are most effective?

One popular activity that has emerged to support monarch conservation is the use of seed balls, a mixture of clay, compost, and seeds that allows for the easy dispersal of milkweed seeds. However, the effectiveness of seed balls is not well understood. To test how seed balls affect milkweed germination, Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium alumni Emma Donahey and Kelsey Fisher compared the use of seed balls vs seed paper vs bare seed plantings.  

Monarchs in the classroom

The start of the fall semester is a great time to explore monarch conservation in the classroom! With the fall migration underway, there’s a plethora of opportunities to instill environmental education into everyday learning. Included in this month's blog are a few ideas for monarch-based classroom activities.

Monarch intern: Sophia Todora

Sophia is a summer field technician at Iowa State conducting plant surveys in the prairie pothole region of Minnesota. In the fall, Sophia attends Bemidji State University in Minnesota for wildlife biology, environmental science, and GIS. 

As thousands of monarch butterflies make their journey south to Mexico this fall, researchers with the Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium (IMCC) are calling on Iowa landowners to help document this remarkable migration. "We are seeking reports from landowners if they have monarchs roosting on their property -- or from community members if they observe roosting monarchs on public lands," said Katherine Kral-O’Brien, with the IMCC. “Identifying these roosting locations provides critical data on migration pathways and helps scientists and conservationists protect and restore key habitats.”

Planning for fall: How you can protect the monarch migration

Monarchs face many threats during their long migration including lack of floral resources and high disease prevalence. To help support and protect the monarchs' fall migration, it is important that we plant native nectar plants that bloom September through late-October. Other ways to help include replacing non-native milkweed, which can increase the spread of diseases, with native milkweed species and allowing caterpillars to grow naturally outside to properly develop their migratory navigation. 

Graduate Researcher: Yuanwu Wang

Yuanwu Wang is Graduate student studying entomology at Iowa State University. His research studies pollinator presence in and around Iowa soybean fields. Growing up in China, Yuanwu was always fascinated by insects. This interest led him to study fireflies during his master’s degree and explore agricultural insect communities for his PhD at ISU!

Sampling for Floral Microbes

This summer, our monarch interns are helping to sample flowers in prairie remnants and reconstructions to determine their floral microbial communities. Research suggests that microbial communities could 1) impact butterfly behavior and health and 2) differ between remnant and reconstructed prairies, so we are trying to understand the existing community dynamics and how that might relate to butterfly conservation. 

Graduate Researcher: Adam Meneses

Adam Meneses is a Graduate Student at Iowa State University studying remnant and reconstructed prairies in southern Minnesota. Growing up in California, Adam loved being outside. His research studying flowering plants and their associated pollinators eventually led him to pursue a master’s degree at ISU!

Summer travels for insect conservation

This summer, consider adding entomotourism to your travel plans! These activities celebrate insects and can support both conservation efforts and local communities.

Monarch intern: Saumya Balaji

Saumya Balaji is an Undergraduate Research Assistant with the Iowa State University Monarch Butterfly Research Team. She is originally from Johnston, Iowa, and is majoring in Environmental Science and Global Resource Systems at Iowa State University. Her interests include entomology and ecological research. Her past insect research experience was to understand the impact of cold stress on the tissues of alfalfa leafcutting bees, which sparked her interest in entomology, in which she plans to pursue her PhD.

Native prairie habitat establishment for monarchs

For landowners looking to support monarch conservation, establishing native prairie habitat is a great option. For larger areas, planting often takes place during late fall and early winter, so now is the time to start planning your native prairie habitat! Here, we discuss site preparation, seed selection, and steps to establish native prairies.

Tips for searching for monarch caterpillars

Monarch caterpillars are just starting to appear in Iowa, but trying to find them amongst multiple milkweeds can be a challenge. Learn some telltale signs of caterpillar presence to help you find monarchs in your yard!

Monarch intern: Emma Donahey

Emma Donahey is an undergraduate research assistant with the Iowa State monarch butterfly research team. Donahey, originally from Des Moines, IA, is a senior majoring in Biology. During the semester, she works in a chemical ecology lab researching the impact of microbes on pollinator feeding behavior.

A study conducted by ISU researchers found that the use of prairie strips in agricultural settings increased the presence of monarch butterflies compared to linear grassy features. Prairie strips contained four times as many nectar plant species and five times as many flowers compared to grass strips. Differences in floral abundance were most apparent during the monarchs’ fall migration with prairie strips providing significantly more blooms. These findings demonstrate how prairie strips can support monarchs during key migration times throughout the year and are a good tool to implement for monarch conservation.

Designing native landscapes for pollinators

Protecting monarchs from extinction

Recent research by Dr. Wayne Thogmartin examines the risk of extinction for the monarch butterfly. By comparing trends in population size, Dr. Thogmartin identifies two potential solutions to combat the monarch’s increasing extinction risk and provides thoughts on which is most feasible. 

This month marks the 10-year anniversary of the Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium. In honor of this achievement, we've put together a celebratory video to highlight the amazing work that has been done and to thank everyone who has given us support. Here's to another 10 years of conservation! *Full video on our YouTube page*

The latest official report of monarch butterflies overwintering in Mexico has just been released and offers some encouragement to those working to save the iconic species. The overwintering monarchs occupied 4.4 acres during the 2024-2025 winter season in Mexico – nearly doubling last year’s acreage.