Date: 09/14/2021

Number: 1500

Picnic area at Goose Lake Prairie. Arrived just before the sun came up to view the monarch roosts in the trees. There is a copse of trees in the center of the drive loop and parking area along with many trees that line the road in and surround the picnic area. Trees in the area are: Red oak, pin oak, white oak, basswoods, black walnut, cottonwood and maple. Most of the trees had some small roosts in them with the main concentration of roosts in some of the trees at the center of the copse. The roosts seemed to be all on the east side of the trees. There are no trees lining the eastern exposure of the picnic grove and that is open to the prairie fields. As the sun started to rise far enough to start illuminating the trees and started to warm the area, it was odd but many of the roosts in the trees on the perimeter that the sun was starting to warm did move to the one large red oak in the center of the copse that the sun had not reached. Most of the monarchs roosted very low in the trees and seemed to also favor low, dead branches that were devoid of leaves. The temperature on arrival was 72 degrees with the wind at 13 mph with gusts to 16 mph. Upon leaving, it seemed that the winds were picking up. Flowers in the prairie were mainly goldenrods, tall sunflower, pasture thistle and boneset, though the monarchs were staying in the trees and really not out nectaring before I left.

Morris, IL

Latitude: 41.4 Longitude: -88.3

Observed by: Phyllis
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