Date: 10/04/2014

Number: 250

Had about 19 folks with me this afternoon for a tagging field trip, started slow at 1pm with just a few monarchs, then It warmed up and the numbers grew! We tagged about 60 and missed at least thrice that many. One 12 year old girl caught a total of 14, and both her and i each had a "double" (2 in one net swing). Every participant that stuck around past the first hike ended up catching at least a few, even the real young ens! Though i think the parents had just as much fun as the kids!!! 250 monarch!

Nectar use was about 40% each goldenrod and tickseed sunflower, then 10% baccharis. There were several clusters, especially at the lakes edge before crossing, about a dozen backed up there! I even had one attracted to a cluster of paper monarchs i attached to a tall cluster of goldenrod. Flight was very directly southwest, right along i85 and the power line we were hiking.

Kudos to the bulk of the group that finished the rugged 4 mile hike, we got back around 430 and could have kept going there were so many monarchs! Kids caught almost everything else too, three lined flower moth, chinese mantids etc.

One family said it was an adventure of a lifetime!

Going out again tomorrow most likely!

Courtesy of Carolina Leps

Falls Lake, NC

Latitude: 36 Longitude: -78.7

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