"Woohoo! One of the fifth graders saw our first monarch of the season!" St. James Catholic School Millstadt, IL    April 12, 2015

Success in Texas
Most first-generation production takes place in Texas. Conditions this year look promising:

"This has been a perfect time for the monarchs to be passing through. The native milkweed is exploding everywhere and flowers are incredible right now." Chuck Patterson Driftwood, TX April 13, 2015

Finding Milkweed
Monarchs travel hundreds of miles across the landscape to find the milkweed they need for egg-laying.It may be harder for monarchs to find milkweed as their habitat shrinks and the gaps between patches become larger.

Scientists are exploring how habitat fragmentation could affect reproduction. If a female has to fly too far, she will require more time to lay her eggs and more nectar to fuel her flight.

Restoring Milkweed Habitat
Farm organizations, farmers, government agencies, monarch researchers, agriculture companies, and conservation organizations met on April 6-7, 2015 to explore how to achieve monarch recovery goals within the agricultural landscape. The meeting was facilitated by the Keystone Policy Center whose mission is to inspire leaders to rise above entrenched positions to reach higher common ground.

"Every monarch's story begins on milkweed; its shortage is why we have a population decline," says Dr. Karen Oberhauser.