Date: 07/17/2014

Number: 1

It is an exceptional year for Monarch sightings in this part of Ontario. The number of monarchs searching for milkweed ramped up several notches about 10 days ago at Kenesserie Tallgrass Prairie. Both sullivant and common milkweed is abundant in this 8 acre prairie. This prairie also has a high diversity of prairie flowers (more than 25 species.)I have been observing at this location for 4 summers now and have not seen numbers like this before. It is possible to look out over the prairie from the viewing stand and see a half dozen or more monarchs at once flitting around looking for milkweed. It is not just at the prairie where I am seeing Monarchs.

I'm seeing Monarchs all over the place-along road right of ways and in my back yard. I saw one yesterday flitting through the middle of major traffic intersection in Chatham. In my back yard garden I have 6 cats on my milkweed plants now for the first time in many years. Ontario officially removed common milk weed from the noxious weed list this past June (the reason given is to conserve the Monarch butterfly)but I doubt that this has had anything to do with higher observed numbers. More and more people are planting milkweed in their gardens and more farmers are letting them be.

Highgate, ON

Latitude: 42.5 Longitude: -81.8

Observed by: Steve
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