Monarch butterflies on agenda
Local population has nearly disappeared
When she was a child, Ukiah resident Andrea Davis remembers Monarch butterflies “seemed to be everywhere,” especially in the fall. When her children were young, the butterflies were still “plentiful enough that their kindergarten teacher knew of milkweed patches where (the butterflies) could be reliably found and brought them to her classroom every year.”
But now, Davis said she “hasn’t seen many for at least 25 years,” and usually only finds them in her own garden, where she grows the native milkweed plants that butterflies rely on.
“I have found at least one surviving caterpillar a year most years, and have had occasional sightings of adults in Ukiah,” Davis said. “About four or five years ago, I saw about six caterpillars in a milkweed patch at Lake Mendocino.”
In an effort to help this important pollinator survive such a steep decline in its numbers, cities and communities across the country are taking the “Mayor’s Monarch Pledge (and) committing to create habitat for the Monarch butterfly and pollinators,
and to educate residents about how they can make a difference at home and in their community,” and the Ukiah City Council is considering adopting that pledge this week.
According to the staff report for the March 17 meeting of the City Council, “Monarch butterflies contribute to the health of our planet. While feeding on nectar, they pollinate many types of wildflowers … and are an important food source for birds, small animals, and other insects.”
They are also considered an indicator species, which is a species whose “population’s presence, absence, or alteration are said to reflect changes in environmental conditions. As adult butterflies, Monarchs live only three to four weeks. Because of their short lifespan, environmental changes impact
the Monarchs quickly, and changes within and between generations are more visible to ecologists. Second, the species distribution is wide: summer habitats in North America range from New England, to the Great Lakes region, north to Canada and west to the Rocky Mountains and California. In late fall, they migrate 2,000 to 3,000 miles to the Sierra Madre mountain range in Central Mexico to spend their winter months.”
According to staff, Ukiah Mayor Juan Orozco “is working with a looseknit group of environmentalists and naturalists to help support Monarch Butterfly populations” with activities that are seen as a multi-year effort. For the first year, the group plans to: 1) Issue a Proclamation to raise awareness about the decline of the Monarch butterfly and the species’ need for habitat; 2) Launch a public communication effort to encourage residents to plant Monarch gardens at their homes or
in their neighborhoods; 3) Engage with community garden groups and urge them to plant native milkweeds and nectar-producing plants; 4) Engage with city parks and recreation, public works, sustainability, and other relevant staff to identify opportunities to revise and maintain mowing programs and milkweed / native nectar plant planting programs; 5) Plant or maintain a Monarch and pollinator-friendly demonstration garden at City Hall or another prominent community location.
The Monarch Pledge will be considered during Wednesday’s City Council meeting, which will begin at 6 p.m. To attend the meeting and make public comment on this item or others, register here: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/ rt/3862698010362077965
You can also watch the meeting (without participating) via the city’s website: www.cityofukiah. com/meetings.