Date: 08/25/2020

Number: 40

While walking under the row of pine trees this morning, waking monarchs flew up into the sunshine. We have been noticing more of them flying into the trees to rest as the sun begins to set in the evening. The next day there were monarchs out nectaring in the field of clover that surrounds us.

I am not sure when the roost first formed but I had been seeing them about the same time every evening.

Counting monarch butterflies is hard so I always aim to be conservative in my estimates of their numbers. I walked all along the edge of the trees on our property at about 8 AM that morning.

The wind was light and from the northwest so they were sheltering on the east side of the pines (also a good place to catch the first rays of the sun) The low that night was 73.

I tend a garden that includes sources of nectar such as several varieties of milkweed, verbena bonariensis, zinnias, cone flowers, goldenrod etc. We have a ditch in front of our property that also has common milkweed and other sources of nectar. Recently, when the county notified us that they were going to spray weed killer on the ditch. We asked them not to do that on our section due to the monarchs and other pollinators. They agreed not to spray and thanked us for helping the monarchs.

Mount Cory, OH

Latitude: 41 Longitude: -83.9

Observed by: Emily
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