Details: Monarchs migrate through the southern Great Plains in the spring and fall, and also reproduce in this region in the spring and late summer/early fall. This last generation of monarchs produced in the late summer/early fall is sometimes referred to as the “fifth generation”. The importance of this generation to the overall population is not clear, and not much is known about this cohort. This webinar focuses on what is known and not known about this generation, including the timing of activity, habitat use, tachinid fly parasitism, OE infection, and tag returns from the overwintering grounds in Mexico, with an emphasis on Oklahoma and Texas.
Presenters: Dr. Kristen Baum (Oklahoma State University)
Recorded: October 23, 2018
Duration: 55 Minutes
Details: Monarch lovers know that planting milkweed in their gardens is a sure way to attract these familiar black and orange butterflies to their yards. Over 100 species of milkweed are native to the U.S. and Canada, yet the most commonly planted milkweed is a single, non-native species. Tropical milkweed (A. curassavica), also known as Mexican milkweed or blood flower, is attractive, easy to grow, and often the only milkweed available at garden centers and nurseries. Unlike most native milkweed species that enter dormancy in the fall, tropical milkweed persists longer and even grows year-round where temperatures remain mild, such as parts of the southwest and Gulf Coast, providing a continuous supply of nectar for adults and food for caterpillars. This can sustain year-round breeding of wild monarchs and lead to high transmission of a debilitating protozoan pathogen called Ophryocystis elektroscirrha (OE). In this webinar, researchers who have studied monarchs, OE and tropical milkweed in the laboratory and field will discuss (1) how tropical milkweed leads to the formation of resident (non-migratory) monarch populations in the southern US, and (2) consequences of this behavior for pathogen transmission, monarch migration, and mixing between resident and migrant monarchs. The presenters will also explore options for managing tropical milkweed gardens, and other ways to support monarchs conservation.
Presenters: Dr. Sonia Altizer, Ania Majewska and Dara Satterfield (University of Georgia)
Recorded: June 16, 2016
Duration: 60 Minutes
Details: Ray Moranz and Stephanie McNight from The Xerces Society join us this month to present on best management practices for monarchs and pollinators on rangelands.
Presenters: Ray Moranz and Stephanie McNight (The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation)
Recorded: August 25, 2020
Duration: 61 Minutes
Details: This webinar examines recent research that simulates population outcomes for different habitat establishment scenarios and insecticide use patterns on agricultural lands. Join us to learn more about the results, which are hopeful for monarchs.
Presenter(s): Dr. Steven Bradbury & Dr. Niranjana Krishnan
Recorded: May 24, 2022
Duration: 58 minutes
Climatic change impacts on the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve Abies religiosa (Sacred fir) forest
Presenter(s): Dr. Cuauhtémoc Sáenz-Romero & Dr. José Arnulfo Blanco Garcia
Recorded: November 14, 2023
Duration: 57 minutes
Climate, Weather and Monarch | AUDIO DESCRIPTION
Details: Weather is a key determinant of monarch numbers, but the story is complicated and interesting. Join us to learn the latest on what we know about monarch population drivers, in the past, present, and future.
Presenter(s): Karen Oberhauser & Leslie Ries
Recorded: August 31
Duration: 62 minutes
Details: MJV’s Development Director and Education Coordinator co-present with Drew Larsen, Director of Education & Outreach Pheasant Forever, to provide some tools and tips for combining fundraising and engagement for your monarch conservation efforts.
Presenters: Ella Phillips, Katie-Lyn Bunney (Monarch Joint Venture) and Drew Larsen (Pheasants Forever)
Recorded: December 15, 2020
Duration: 52 Minutes
Details: Colleagues in Mexico will share the work being done to protect and conserve monarchs and their overwintering sites within the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve (MBBR).
Presenters: Fondo Monarca Eduardo Rendón Salinas (World Wildlife Fund)
Recorded: October 27, 2020
Duration: 58 Minutes
Details: Though most are familiar with the large populations of monarchs in the eastern US that travel to Mexico each fall, monarchs in the western US – including those that migrate annually to the California Coast – have received far less attention. In the western US, the Xerces Society is working to identify, protect, manage, and restore monarch breeding and overwintering habitat through conducting and engaging citizen scientists in applied research, developing habitat management technical guidance, and advocacy. This webinar will provide an overview of the biology, life history, and conservation status of monarchs in the western US, including factors that may be contributing to the observed population decline at California overwintering sites. The webinar will also review current conservation efforts of the Xerces Society and partners, including habitat management and enhancement efforts, applied research, and citizen science programs in monarch natal, migratory, and overwintering habitats of the West.
Presenters: Sarina Jepsen (The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation)
Recorded: February 28, 2016
Duration: 63 Minutes
Details: Monarchs share habitat with countless other organisms. In this webinar, Drew Larsen and bird biologist Kelly VanBeek share how conservation of grasslands intersects with the conservation of native pollinators, grassland birds and gamebirds, using case studies from Southeastern Wisconsin.
Presenters: Kelly VanBeek, Wildlife Biologist (Migratory Bird Program, USFWS), Drew Larsen, Director of Education and Outreach (Pheasants Forever, Inc. and Quail Forever)
Recorded: August 24, 2021
Duration: 57 Minutes
Details: Urban habitat conservation is critical to the success of monarch butterflies. Creating habitat in the urban setting will ensure that the butterflies have a place to stop on their migration journey. In this webinar, Catherine Werner from the St. Louis Mayor’s Office and Milkweeds for Monarchs program, Cortney Solum from Two Rivers National Wildlife Refuge, and Kristin Shaw from the Eastern Tallgrass Prairie and Big Rivers Landscape Conservation Cooperative, will share a case study of the Milkweeds for Monarchs (M4M) program in the city of St. Louis, MO. The M4M program is an urban ecological effort of the city and its partners to connect people to nature while providing habitat for the monarch butterfly and its caterpillars. Not only is the M4M program creating habitat within the City of St. Louis, it is a part of a larger effort to conserve the monarch butterfly and other pollinators in urban areas in the Eastern United States. Participants will learn how they might be able to start a similar program in their urban community.
Presenters: Cortney Solum (Two Rivers National Wildlife Refuge), Kristin Shaw (Ecological Places in Cities) and Catherine Werner (Milkweeds for Monarch Program)
Recorded: July 16, 2015
Duration: 55 Minutes
Details: Monarch citizen science has been critical to our understanding of this iconic species. Four main programs will be covered in-depth in this webinar, representing multiple aspects of monarch biology. These include Journey North and Monarch Watch (tracking the migration), Monarch Larva Monitoring Project (tracking egg and larval abundance), and Monarch Health (tracking monarch parasites). Outcomes of these and other citizen science programs will be shared.
Presenters: Sonia Altizer (University of Georgia)
Recorded: April 30, 2015
Duration: 72 Minutes
Details: Do you want to engage and educate the public about the value of your Waystation and pollinator gardens? Interpretive and educational signage is very valuable in communicating the importance of why it is important to create monarch and other pollinator habitat, but the task of designing, creating, and installing attractive and durable outdoor signs is daunting for many. This webinar will provide valuable information on how to design and create outdoor signs. Topics will cover sign types and styles, relative costs of types of signs, examples of effective sign layout and design, recommendations for materials choices, suggestions for how to work with a professional sign company, ideas for low-cost alternatives, and how to utilize in-house capacity and volunteer resources. Quality signage can make your waystation or pollinator garden appealing and interesting while serving the valuable purpose of educating the public on what your garden does and why it is important.
Presenters: Rich Dolesh (National Recreation & Park Association), Angie Edwards (Fossil Industries) and Pete Carroll (Maryland National Capital Park & Planning Commission)
Recorded: February 23, 2017
Duration: 63 Minutes
Details: A well-designed seed mix is an essential component of any native habitat restoration project. The seeds we use in each mix ultimately define the character of restored vegetation, and determine how well a restoration project can meet its goals. In this webinar, we’ll cover the basic principles of seed mix design, review some of the tools currently available for designing seed mixes and walk through several design examples using the Tallgrass Prairie Center’s Iowa Prairie Seed Calculator. The [Iowa Prairie Seed Calculator] (http://www.jamess.com/IowaPrairieSeedCalculator-D2/) incorporates the core concepts of seed mix design with a user-friendly interface, taking seeding method, planting time, and planting site conditions into account to produce an ecologically appropriate seed mix ready to send to commercial seed producers.
Presenters: Justin Meissen (Tallgrass Prairie Center Research and Restoration)
Recorded: February 16, 2017
Duration: 64 Minutes
Details: Join Monarch Joint Venture Education Coordinator for an overview of how monarchs can be used as an education tool in classrooms and informal settings year-round. Monarchs’ inherent charisma make them an ideal organism to focus lessons and activities on in order to engage with students and a broad array of audiences. This webinar will touch on various lessons, activities and curricula available from Monarch Joint Venture partners for you to use in your monarch education and outreach opportunities.
Presenters: Katie-Lyn Bunney (Monarch Joint Venture)
Recorded: September 24, 2019
Duration: 59 Minutes
Details: In this webinar, a panel of presenters will share techniques and case studies for enhancing existing habitats for monarch butterflies and other pollinators. Topics will include best management practices for augmenting natural habitats, roadsides, right-of-way areas, and other landscapes. Additionally, you will learn more in-depth about milkweed and nectar plant availability, including seed collection, plug production and sourcing native plant and seed materials.
Presenters: Greg Hoch, Mary Byrne, Vicki Wojcik, Kristine Nemec and Chip Taylor
Recorded: April 23, 2015
Duration: 78 Minutes
Details: Dr. Weiss will present his methods for assessing overwintering habitats, using hemispherical photography and LiDAR to quantify wind and sun exposure within forest canopies. This mapping allows explicit decisions on forest management to keep the sun-exposed and wind-sheltered spots microsites available for the butterflies.
Presenters: Dr. Weiss
Recorded: January 26, 2021
Duration: 62 Minutes
Details: Assessing the on-farm benefits of planting pollinator forage can be difficult to pin down. But an overall increase in profitability can be achieved by moving marginal acres to pollinator habitat. Land taken out of production reduces overall yield, but this is offset by reduced input costs and soil and water quality benefits, among others. Federal conservation programs such as CRP and EQIP can also greatly off-set planting and management costs. This webinar, co-hosted by the Monarch Joint Venture and Farmers for Monarchs, walks through issues monarch butterflies are facing, what can be done about it at the farm-level, and the benefits to the land and land owner including increased profitability.
Presenters: Kiley Friedrich (Monarch Joint Venture)
Recorded: November 17, 2020
Duration: 62 Minutes
Details: Thelma Redick will discuss the business case for support monarch conservation, exploring how businesses work with the Wildlife Habitat Council (WHC) to incorporate conservation into business operations, corporate citizenship initiatives and business management targets. Several quick-fire case studies will introduce the breadth of project types implemented by WHC members, across sectors and with varying resource availability. Susan Kelsey will then take a deep dive into how GM, a long-time member of the Wildlife Habitat Council, monarch habitat a priority among their suite of pollinator projects in North America. With more than seventy certified programs world-wide, GM has used very effectively used monarch habitat as one way to engage employees and community, enhance habitat, and link to local, regional and national ecological initiatives. Iris Caldwell will then provide an overview of how organizations in the Rights-of-Way as Habitat Working Group are approaching monarch habitat conservation, also featuring a couple of industry case studies.
Presenters: Iris Caldwell (Energy Resources Center), Thelma Redick and Susan Kelsey (Wildlife Habitat Council)
Recorded: August 28, 2018
Duration: 59 Minutes
Details: As milkweed, the sole host plant for monarch butterflies, has diminished across the landscape, so have population numbers for the iconic butterfly. A broad scale effort involving many partners is needed to restore this habitat across North America to support monarchs and other wildlife. A key step in this process is increasing the availability of native milkweed plant materials, including seeds and plugs. In this webinar you will learn about regional native milkweed plant material needs, seed collection, processing, storage, stratification, germination, transplantation to plug cell, growing out, control of pests with biological control methods, site preparation, planting, watering and monitoring to determine survival rates. From backyard gardeners to large scale native plant producers, everyone has a role to play in supporting monarch habitat across North America. The focus of this webinar will be producing milkweed host plants, but other native nectar plants are also essential in supporting the monarch migration.
Presenters: Dr. Chip Taylor (Monarch Watch)
Recorded: March 23, 2016
Duration: 62 Minutes
Details: This webinar will examine the step-by-step procedures for designing, installing, and managing native plant communities specifically designed for monarch breeding. Among the topics to be explored are initial planning considerations, formulating seed mixes, site preparation and weed abatement, and long-term land management practices. Real world case studies will be provided, and successful approaches in multiple eco-regions will be described.
Presenters: Eric Lee-Mäder (Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation)
Recorded: February 12, 2015
Duration: 79 Minutes
Details: Does the prospect of picking weeds out of a failed pollinator planting leave you cold? You’re not alone! This webinar, delivered by the Keystone Monarch Collaborative and Monarch Joint Venture, will feature the real-world experiences of farmers establishing habitat adjacent to their working land. Pete Berthelsen brings three decades worth of experience not only growing habitat himself but also consulting with landowners on the best establishment practices for their land. Josh Divan advises farmers on habitat establishment and Farm Bill programs, and his own family has used precision agriculture tools to identify areas that contribute more to their operational bottom line as habitat than as cropped acreage. This is the second of two webinars this summer for agricultural landowners and managers. The first on May 28th focused more broadly on the economic and ecological case for enhancing habitat adjacent to working lands and is now available to view as a recording.
Presenters: Tracy McCleaf, Cora Lund Preston, Josh Divan, Peter S. Berthelsen and Jonathan Geurts
Recorded: July 23, 2019
Duration: 60 Minutes
Presented by: Ania Majewska
Recorded: October 24, 2023
Duration: 60 minutes
This presentation followed the guidelines for creating an audio-descriptive webinar.
Details: Laura Lukens and Jennifer Thieme from the Monarch Joint Venture will discuss the goals, , and uses of the Integrated Monarch Monitoring Program (IMMP). The IMMP is a national initiative to capture information about both monarchs and their habitats across geographies and land use types. Data will be used to update population and habitat models, as well as inform how habitat conservation efforts may influence population and habitat dynamics. Viewers will learn how researchers, conservation professionals, and citizen scientists can use the IMMP to meet their own objectives and information needs.
Presenters: Laura Lukens and Jennifer Thieme (Monarch Joint Venture)
Recorded: April 23, 2019
Duration: 55 Minutes
Details: Lawns to Legumes is a new program in Minnesota, the first of its kind in the US and supported by state legislation, that offers a combination of workshops, coaching, planting guides and cost-share funding for installing pollinator-friendly native plantings in residential lawns. The program also includes a public education campaign to raise awareness for pollinator habitat projects and will establish demonstration neighborhoods that showcase best practices. Learn more about how the program came to be from those responsible for its creation and implementation.
Presenters: Dan Shaw (Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources) and Rick Hansen (Minnesota State Representative)
Recorded: September 22, 2020
Duration: 60 Minutes
Presenters: Allison Cariveau (Monarch Joint Venture)
Recorded: October 22, 2019
Duration: 61 Minutes
Details: This webinar will discuss establishing and maintaining native meadows in the eastern US. There is a growing movement in the eastern US to convert lawn to meadows, even small backyard plots, for pollinator and wildlife habitat. There are many methods to accomplish the conversion from killing the existing vegetation and reseeding to the slower regime of yearly mowing and inter-planting with perennials. Both methods and meadow maintenance needs will be discussed.
Presenters: Larry Weaner (Larry Weaner Landscape Associates) and Ann Aldrich (Dumbarton Oaks Park Conservancy)
Recorded: July 24, 2018
Duration: 68 Minutes
Details: You will learn about the amazing monarch butterflies and their unique long-distance migration. From their milkweed host plants to parasitoids that ail them, we will explore the complex life history of the species. In addition, you will learn how to get involved in your own school or backyard to help monarchs, and benefit many other wildlife species at the same time! Listen carefully, and don’t forget to take notes; we will have a few pop quiz questions throughout the webinar!
Presenters: Cathy Downs (Bring Back the Monarchs to Texas) and Karen Oberhauser (University of Minnesota Monarch Lab)
Recorded: October 4, 2016
Duration: 68 Minutes
Details: Monarchs need milkweed! Collecting native milkweed seed is a cost-effective way to get local ecotype seeds for use in restoration projects. In this webinar, you’ll get an overview of milkweed seed collection, including a primer on native plants, tips and tricks for harvesting, storing and growing milkweed seed, and how you can participate in the Monarch Watch Milkweed Market to contribute to milkweed planting on a large scale. If you want to learn about how begin or improve your milkweed seed collection efforts, this is the webinar for you!
Presenters: Hal Mann (Wild Ones Oak Openings), Bob Huffman and Angie Babbit (Prairie Restorations Inc.,) and Dena Podrebarac (Monarch Watch)
Recorded: June 26, 2018
Duration: 58 Minutes
Details: From egg to adult, monarchs undergo a fascinating metamorphosis. The life cycle of monarchs is well known and inspirational, making these iconic insects ideal for research and science education. However, habitat loss and other threats are endangering this majestic creature. You will gain a greater understanding of the monarch’s life cycle, biology, as well as their incredible journey across North America to overwintering sites in Mexico and California each year.
Presenters: Dr. Karen Oberhauser (University of Minnesota Monarch Lab)
Recorded: December 17, 2015
Duration: 57 Minutes
Details: Dr. Chip Taylor from Monarch Watch will describe a stage specific model for monarch population development based on years of studying the responses of the monarch population to temperature, rainfall/drought from the time the returning monarchs enter Texas to the end of the fall migration in December. The model is based on timing and numbers combined with an attempt to understand the optimal physical conditions that favor monarch reproduction and survival. The intent is to create a model that will enable us to predict the size of the fall migration and the overwintering population.
Presenters: Cora Lund Preston and Dr. Chip Taylor (Monarch Watch)
Recorded: March 19, 2019
Duration: 60 Minutes
Details: Reproduction is a fascinating facet of the life of an insect with more than its share of fascinating features. Monarch scientists Karen Oberhauser and Michelle Solensky will share their research on the ins and outs of monarch reproduction, from mating behavior to spermatophores and sperm competition. Learn how they’ve counted monarch sperm (both kinds!), distinguished female rejection postures, and measured who wins in the inner battles among sperm. You just might come away from this talk thinking that monarch reproduction is just as fascinating as monarch migration!
Presenters: Karen Oberhauser (UW-Madison Arboretum) and Michelle Solensky (University of Jamestown)
Recorded: May 25th, 2021
Duration: 65 Minutes
Presented by: Wendy Caldwell, MJV Executive Director
Recorded: December 19, 2023
Duration: 59 minutes
This presentation followed the guidelines for creating an audio-descriptive webinar.
Details: Greg Mitchell joins us to talk about the listing decision for monarchs in Canada, how they fund stewardship projects and the conservation research in which he is currently involved.
Presenters: Greg Mitchell (Environment and Climate Change Canada)
Recorded: June 23, 2020
Duration: 62 Minutes
Details: Monarch conservation will require the involvement of the governments, non-government organizations, and citizens of all three North American countries. It will also require that limited resources be spent in ways that are most likely to help monarchs. Monarch biologists, habitat conservation practitioners, and landscape scientists have been meeting for over two years to create a blueprint for ensuring that monarch conservation strategies are based on our best available science. This group has worked to create a target for monarch population numbers that will minimize risks of extinction, develop regional priorities for habitat protection and restoration, and identify the most important risks to monarch populations. In this webinar, we’ll summarize the work of the Monarch Conservation Science Partnership, ending with concrete suggestions for local, regional, and continental action.
Presenters: Dr. Karen Oberhauser (University of Minnesota Monarch Lab), Ryan Drum (USFWS), Wayne Thogmartin (USGS) and Holly Holt (Monarch Joint Venture)
Recorded: May 26, 2016
Duration: 78 Minutes
Details: In support of the USGS’ Monarch Conservation Science Partnership, Jason Rohweder and Wayne Thogmartin developed desktop decision support tools to help in conservation planning for the imperiled monarch butterfly. Desktop tools were developed that allow users to prioritize counties within the conterminous United States according to multiple input criteria important for monarch butterfly conservation. Additional tools were developed to model the anticipated number of milkweeds on the landscape based upon underlying land cover/land use characteristics. The user can alter the composition of these land cover/land use characteristics using a separate desktop tool to model gains and losses of milkweeds on the landscape under various conservation scenarios.
Presenters: Jason Rohweder (USGS) and Dr. Holly Holt (Monarch Joint Venture)
Recorded: May 26, 2016
Duration: 46 Minutes
Details: Interested in creating a monarch habitat garden? Want to participate or initiate community efforts to protect monarchs in your area? Creating habitat and getting others involved are two of the most important ways we can protect and conserve the monarch butterfly. Experts from Monarch Joint Venture partner organizations Wild Ones and the National Wildlife Federation will present their best practices for using these important conservation strategies. Donna VanBuecken of Wild Ones will discuss the basics of gardening and the major considerations to make your garden habitat sustainable and inviting for monarchs. Mary Phillips of the National Wildlife Federation will discuss community scale efforts highlighting their own success stories in engaging local communities in conservation.
Presenters: Donna VanBuecken (Wild Ones), Mary Phillips and Patrick (The National Wildlife Federation)
Recorded: August 13, 2015
Duration: 53 Minutes
Details: Monarch overwintering experts from both eastern and western populations of monarchs will discuss the ins and outs of monarch overwintering behavior, biology and migration. Monarchs are unique in the insect world for their long distance multi-generational migration and their incredible numbers in the oyamel fir forests of Mexico and scattered groves along California’s Pacific coast. Learn about the “Goldilocks” conditions which make these forests just right for overwintering and what monarchs need to survive this season. Also, learn about the threats that these important forests (and the monarchs who rely on them) face and the questions left unanswered about monarch migration. Plus take a sneak peek at all the different ways humans try to count thousands and millions of monarchs each year!
Presenters: Emma Pelton (Xerces Society) and Dr. Pablo Jaramillo (Monarch Butterfly Fund)
Recorded: January 26, 2017
Duration: 67 Minutes
Details: Join Dr. Sonia Altizer, Dr. Lincoln Brower, and Dr. Karen Oberhauser in this advanced topic webinar about monarch research. You will learn about cutting edge monarch research using new techniques to answer questions about things like migration and population genetics. Additionally, learn about research in the areas of overwintering monarchs, disease spread, natural enemies, population trends, and . You will also get a short overview about the new monarch book, titled Monarchs in a Changing World: Biology and Conservation of an Iconic Butterfly.
Presenter(s): Sonia Altizer (University of Georgia), Karen Oberhauser (University of Minnesota) and Lincoln Brower (University of Florida)
Recorded: May 21, 2015
Duration: 69 Minutes
Presenter(s): Jennifer Thieme and Laura Lukens of Monarch Joint Venture
Recorded: April 25, 2023
Duration: 19 minutes
Details: We know that monarchs are negatively impacted by many human activities, including habitat degradation and loss, pesticide use, climate change, vehicular collisions, , and pathogen spread. Due to this long list of factors that affect monarch populations, it is difficult to determine the contributions of any single factor to their dwindling numbers. In this webinar, we summarize the ways in which climate affects monarchs during all stages of their annual cycle of breeding, migrating, and overwintering. We’ll then review potential impacts of climate change on monarchs, summarizing a combination of lab and field studies, and modeling efforts. There will be plenty of time to ask questions, and we’ll provide links to published and online resources that will allow you to dig deeper into the fascinating topic of monarchs, weather, and climate.
Presenters: Dr. Kelly Nail (University of Minnesota Monarch Lab, US Fish and Wildlife Service) and Dr. Karen Oberhauser (University of Minnesota Monarch Lab, Monarch Joint Venture)
Recorded: December 15, 2016
Duration: 61 Minutes
Details: Tremendous amounts of habitat have been lost throughout the monarchs’ range, primarily due to development and changing agricultural practices. While it may not be possible to restore the habitat that was lost in its entirety, there are many opportunities to enhance and restore habitat for monarchs and pollinators in marginal areas, such as roadsides. While mortality of these insects by vehicle collisions is a concern for many, it is thought that the benefits of roadside habitats outweigh the costs. This webinar will include background information on monarchs and pollinators in roadside habitats, key findings from a study of milkweed and monarch surveys along roadsides, and case studies and opportunities for Departments of Transportation.
Presenters: Dr. Karen Oberhauser and Kyle Kasten (University of Minnesota Monarch Lab), Jennifer Hopwood (Xerces Society) and Ken Graeve (Minnesota Department of Transportation)
Recorded: August 31, 2016
Duration: 64 Minutes
Details: Every corner of the landscape that the monarch butterfly navigates is shaped, to some degree, by humans. While this has resulted in a variety of obstacles for monarchs, people are striving to create or maintain habitat for these charismatic creatures. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the Field Museum’s Keller Science Action Center have been working to understand the social, political, and economic factors that produce environmental threats, and foster those that benefit monarchs and their habitats. In this webinar, USFWS Human Dimensions Team Lead Christine Browne will explain how these factors within the socio-ecological systems have been identified and considered in the development of conservation strategies, and Field Museum Social Scientist Lex Winter will share research on how these factors play out on the ground in urban and suburban areas in the Midwest.
Presenters: Tracy McCleaf (USFWS), Cora Lund Preston, Dr. Christine Browne and Lex Winter
Recorded: June 25, 2019
Duration: 70 Minutes
Details: Webinar Description: Drs. Karen Oberhauser and Sonia Altizer will describe how monarchs interact with dozens of other species in diverse ecological communities through pollination, herbivory, competition, and as hosts or as prey to natural enemies. Monarchs are famous for sequestering toxins from their milkweed host plants, which protects them against some natural enemies. Despite this protection, monarchs can fall prey to predators, parasites, and pathogens at all stages of their life cycle. In fact, scientists estimate that only 5% of monarchs survive from egg to the adult stage in natural populations, in large part due to natural enemies. In this webinar, we tour the incredible diversity of animals and microbes that interact with monarchs in the wild. These agents can exert significant pressure on wild monarch populations, and have shaped monarch morphology, chemical defense, and possibly even their amazing migration. Human rearing of monarchs can protect them from some enemy attacks, but captive conditions and crowding can also expose monarchs to new threats. Because many predators and parasites are part of monarch’s natural ecology, it is important to protect and restore the diverse ecological communities that monarchs are a part of. Finally, this webinar will provide ideas for how you can think beyond monarchs as a single species and engage with and conserve their remarkable community.
Presenters: Dr. Karen Oberhauser (University of Minnesota Monarch Lab) and Dr. Sonia Altizer (UGA Athletic Association Professor of Ecology)
Recorded: March 26, 2019
Duration: 71 Minutes
Details: Monarchs in the Rough was initiated in 2017 through a partnership between Audubon International and the Environmental Defense Fund to work with golf courses to plant & protect monarch habitat. Additional sponsors and grant funding was received to scale conservation up to the landscape then continental level.
In recent years, many companies and other entities have undertaken promotional seed distribution programs intended to benefit pollinators. However, information pertaining to the actual planting and subsequent success of plants is lacking for native seed distribution efforts. There is a dearth of quantifiable metrics that demonstrate plant growth or what response the intended target species group (i.e., bees or butterflies) have had as a result of any new habitat which is created. The assumption by many is that seed packets or larger quantities are installed and properly cared for to ensure germination and husbandry of the plants through to successful establishment. Furthermore, few (if any) activities have focused on long-term maintenance of sites to ensure continued benefit if it exists in the first place. A novel aspect of this work is bringing the golf sector into pollinator conservation in a coordinated way which has the personnel and financial resources required to manage a site into the future.
Presenters: Marcus Gray (Audubon International)
Recorded: February 25, 2020
Duration: 60 Minutes
Details: When common milkweed is cut back during the growing season it produces new growth over the next few weeks. Research suggests these regenerating stems are very attractive to ovipositing monarchs, contain fewer monarch predators, and may be safer environments for first-instar caterpillars. This presentation will review research on this topic, including results from the ReGrow Milkweed for Monarchs community science project, and discuss prospects and uncertainties around using disturbance as a conservation tool for monarch recovery.
Presenters: Nathan Haan
Recorded: March 23, 2021
Duration: 61 Minutes
Presenter: Adriana Valera of WWF Mexico
Recorded: August 22, 2023
Duration: 55 Minutes
Details: A big-picture perspective on monarch conservation by MJV Coordinator, Wendy Caldwell. Wendy will describe the conservation goals for monarchs in North America and a broad-scale approach for engaging partners to help achieve those goals. From the perspective of the national Monarch Conservation Implementation Plan, she will illustrate how efforts across scales and topics are integrating for improved success in species recovery. Creating habitat for monarchs, other pollinators, wildlife, and ecosystem services is a primary outcome of a broader strategy to engage, educate, and inspire new conservationists. Everyone has a role to play in protecting the monarch migration. This webinar will cover how MJV’s implementation pillars (habitat creation, research/monitoring, and education/outreach) work together to help us achieve our monarch and habitat targets.
Presenters: Wendy Caldwell
Recorded: February 27, 2018
Duration: 59 Minutes
Planning Small-Scale Native Pollinators Habitat
Details: Learn about creating pollinator-friendly gardens in small spaces.
Presenter: Amanda Barth, Jennifer Ehlert, and Jacqueline Nguyen
Date Recorded: Tuesday, March 28, 2023
Duration: 52 minutes
Presenter: Rob Davis
Date Recorded: July 25, 2023
Duration: 60 minutes
Details: Learn about the western monarchs’ overwintering habitat in coastal California and the unique challenges and opportunities to protect and restore the groves. Topics will include examples of how land managers, policy makers and community members can help make a difference.
Presenter(s) and Affiliations: Emma Pelton - emma.pelton@xerces.org
Date recorded: September 28, 2021
Duration: 60 minutes
This presentation followed the guidelines for creating an audio-descriptive webinar.
Details: Get up to speed on the latest monarch and pollinator research with Jennifer and Laura from the MJV science team. The Monarch Research Review is a volunteer-driven, annual compendium of published articles available to everyone on the MJV website.
Presenter(s): Presenters: Jennifer Thieme & Laura Lukens, Monarch Joint Venture
Recorded: June 28, 2022
Duration: 66 minutes
This presentation followed the guidelines for creating an audio descriptive webinar.
Details: Like the Monarch Butterfly, more than one-third of America’s fish and wildlife species are now at risk of extinction. In the United States alone, more than 1,600 species are already listed under the Endangered Species Act, another 150 are presumed extinct, and state wildlife agencies have identified more than 12,000 Species of Greatest Conservation Need. The Recovering America’s Wildlife Act, federal legislation to create an almost $1.4 billion annual fund for states and tribes, will focus on proactive conservation actions to prevent wildlife from becoming endangered as well as help recover those already endangered. It will be the most significant investment in wildlife since the creation of the ESA. The Monarch Butterfly is a prime example of a species in dire need of proactive conservation action. This bill would provide the much needed funds to do more habitat restoration, monitoring, research, education to help this butterfly in every part of our nation. The nationwide campaign to elevate the wildlife crisis and build a big tent coalition to ensure the bill’s passage needs the Monarch Joint Venture’s partners help!
Presenters: Naomi Ederlson (National Wildlife Federation)
Recorded: March 24, 2020
Duration: 57 Minutes
Details: Like the Monarch Butterfly, more than one-third of America’s fish and wildlife species are now at risk of extinction. In the United States alone, more than 1,600 species are already listed under the Endangered Species Act, another 150 are presumed extinct, and state wildlife agencies have identified more than 12,000 Species of Greatest Conservation Need. The Recovering America’s Wildlife Act, federal legislation to create an almost $1.4 billion annual fund for states and tribes, will focus on proactive conservation actions to prevent wildlife from becoming endangered as well as help recover those already endangered. It will be the most significant investment in wildlife since the creation of the ESA. The Monarch Butterfly is a prime example of a species in dire need of proactive conservation action. This bill would provide the much needed funds to do more habitat restoration, monitoring, research, education to help this butterfly in every part of our nation. The nationwide campaign to elevate the wildlife crisis and build a big tent coalition to ensure the bill’s passage needs the Monarch Joint Venture’s partners help!
Presenters: Naomi Ederlson (National Wildlife Federation)
Recorded: March 24, 2020
Duration: 57 Minutes
Details: Homes, businesses, and other private lands have great potential for providing quality habitat for monarchs and other native pollinators. This presentation will provide listeners with basic considerations for pollinator habitat no matter their location, as well as specific tips and suggestions for listeners in the western US who want to increase the habitat available for western monarch butterflies.
Presenters: Ann-Marie Benz (California Native Plant Society), Amanda Barth (Utah State University) and Katie Lyn Bunney (Monarch Joint Venture)
Recorded: June 22, 2021
Duration: 60 Minutes
Details: A collaboration between the Monarch Joint Venture, Simple Business Automation, and the U.S.G.S. has developed remote sensing technology to detect and count common milkweed stems. This technology may be a cost-efficient and effective method to help meet monarch conservation targets for the eastern population. Join MJV Executive Director Wendy Caldwell and project partners for an update on remote sensing pilot programs and other applications of remote sensing in aiding conservation effectiveness beyond monarchs and milkweed.
Presenters: Wendy Caldwell, Monarch Joint Venture, Clint Otto, U.S. Geological Survey, and Greg Emerick, Simple Business Automation.
Recorded: December 20, 2022
Duration: 58 minutes
Details: Watch for research updates from monarch programs and scientists! This video focuses on habitat with presentations from Laura Lukens and Kyle Kasten from the Monarch Joint Venture, and Dr. John Pleasants from Iowa state on their research and work on monarch habitat in the US.
Presenters: Laura Lukens (Monarch Joint Venture), Kyle Kasten (Monarch Joint Venture) and John Pleasants, PhD (Iowa State University)
Recorded: July 28, 2020
Duration: 65 Minutes
Details: Two topics are covered. The first includes the migratory movements and overwintering site selection by Western Monarchs. The second is pesticide contamination of milkweed in California’s Central Valley, which may be a contributor to monarch decline.
Presenters: Gail Morris (Southwest Monarch Study), Dr. Francis Villablanca (Monarch Alert/CalPoly) and Sarah Hoyle (The Xerces Society)
Recorded: April 28, 2020
Duration: 61 Minutes
Details: Roadsides contain potentially thousands of acres of monarch habitat with millions of stems of milkweed hosts, but they also present risks. Emilie will discuss her research over the past five years investigating costs and benefits of roadside habitat.
Presenter: Emilie C. Snell-Rood, University of Minnesota
Recorded: March 22, 2022
Duration: 61 minutes
This presentation followed the guidelines for creating an audio descriptive webinar.
Details: In April 2020, USFWS approved the Nationwide Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances (CCAA) for Monarch Butterfly on Energy and Transportation Lands. This agreement was completed at a national scale on one of the fastest timelines undertaken for such an effort. Its partnership and final approval have been considered a conservation success story. The development of this agreement incorporated aspects of structured decision making (SDM) to help make key decisions. In particular, setting targets for the adoption rates required for conservation across different land types was a key decision driven by SDM. SDM. was also used to help rapid prototype through other key decisions such as, “who would administer the agreements?”, as well as using problem framing and clear objectives to help orient partner decisions. This session will introduce the CCAA, its goals, and highlight ways in which SDM informed decision making and facilitation across more than 45 partners.
Presenters: Dan Salas (Cardno)
Recorded: July 21, 2020
Duration: 51 Minutes
Details: This webinar will discuss the science and safety of photovoltaic solar and the growing trend of planting pollinator habitat under and around ground-mounted solar panels. In 2016 alone, nearly 2,500 acres of solar sites in Minnesota and Wisconsin were seeded with millions of native flowers and grasses including black-eyed susans, side-oats grama, purple prairie clover, butterfly milkweed, and calico aster.
Presenters: Eric Udelhofen (OneEnergy Renewables) and Rob Davis (501(c)3 nonprofit Fresh Energy)
Recorded: April 6, 2017
Duration: 61 Minutes
Details: For many years the southwest United States was a monarch mystery, a place where monarchs were scarce and little known about their breeding and migration patterns. The Southwest Monarch Study opened new doors of understanding after tagging over 14,000 monarchs and monitoring breeding habitats across the region. This webinar will explore citizen science efforts primarily in Arizona but expanding to New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, the California deserts and western Colorado. Our results dispelled the earlier belief in a Rocky Mountain division in migration destination and also provided new information regarding abundant breeding habitats and small overwintering aggregations in the area. New monarch conservation partnerships working to expand habitats across the southwest will also be featured.
Presenters: Gail Morris (Coordinator of the Southwest Monarch Study)
Recorded: April 28, 2016
Duration: 56 Minutes
Details: The Monarch Collaborative is working to identify how partnerships in the farming and ranching community can support and enhance habitat for a sustainable monarch population. This webinar, Success Stories in Engaging the Agricultural Community in State Monarch Conservation Planning, will feature speakers from the Monarch Collaborative, the Iowa Monarch Consortium, and Missourians for Monarchs to provide learnings and tips on how to build a successful state plan that brings together the agricultural community with conservation partners in informing state plans and supporting the monarch butterfly. This webinar will also communicate success stories and lessons learned from where states are engaging agricultural partners in monarch conservation planning efforts; show why it’s important for agriculture groups to be involved, where and how they are involved, what worked to get them involved, and how they are communicating with growers and driving action in their states; and point grower organizations toward additional resources for learning more and getting involved.
Presenters: Steve Bradbury (Iowa State University), Wayne Fredericks (Iowa Soybean Association), Aimee Hood (Monsanto), Karen Kinkead (Iowa Department of Natural Resources), Susan Kozak (Iowa Department of Agriculture & Stewardship) and Brent Vandeloecht (Missouri Department of Conservation)
Recorded: March 27, 2018
Duration: 61 Minutes
Details: Prairies contain incredible beauty and diversity, though neither is widely recognized by the public. Along with the size and connectivity of habitats, the biological diversity in prairies creates the ecological resilience needed to help ensure their continued survival. This photo-heavy presentation will delve into the diversity of prairies, especially within plants and invertebrates, sharing incredible stories about species and their interactions with each other. Chris will also talk about how we can help prairies build and maintain their ecological resilience, even in the face of increasing threats. Finally, he will share some of the results of his year-long project to photograph as much beauty and diversity as he could within a single square meter of Nebraska prairie.
Presenters: Chris Helzer (The Nature Conservancy)
Recorded: March 5, 2021
Duration: 65 Minutes
Presenters: Dr. Jaret Daniels (University of Florida)
Recorded: December 17, 2019
Duration: 60 Minutes
Details: The “Blitz” recently celebrated its 5th anniversary with over 10,000 observations of monarchs and milkweed across Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. This webinar presents the origins, present moment, and future plans of this trinational effort. Description: The International Monarch Monitoring Blitz: A New North American Tradition for Monarch Conservation.
Presenter(s): Alessandro Diene, Insectarium of Montréal
Recorded: July 26, 2022
Duration: 58 minutes
This presentation followed the guidelines for creating an audio-descriptive webinar.
Details: For Mazahua and Otomis communities, the territory on which the monarch butterfly overwinters is a sacred and fluid space that connects the forest, its waters, and the cornfield. This relationship continues to be produced and reproduced through ritualized practices.
This webinar discusses the importance of forest-centered cosmologies in protecting the monarch butterfly's winter home. Dr. Gonzalez-Duarte will be in conversation with Otomi community members Jesus Arriaga Vazquez and Olivia Vazquez Espinosa. Bi-directional English-Spanish and Spanish-English translations will be provided.
Presenters: Dr. Columba Gonzalez, Mount Saint Vincent Univ., with Jesus Arriaga Vazquez and Olivia Vasquez Espinosa.
Recorded: November 15, 2022
Details: It goes without saying that preserving the monarch migration throughout North America will only be successful with the help of volunteers. Restoring habitat, planting milkweed and participating in citizen science are just a few of the ways that volunteers contribute to monarch conservation. Public lands managers, habitat managers, and researchers have an opportunity to engage a growing number of people aware of this issue as volunteers who can make lasting and important contributions. This webinar will highlight some best practices for agencies and non-profit organizations working with volunteers. You will learn new ways to utilize and recognize volunteers and new ways to give volunteers meaningful opportunities for citizen science and habitat enhancement. Volunteers are vital to restoring the monarch. Learn how you can inspire passion and commitment in your volunteers and achieve more than you ever thought possible with their help!
Presenters: Rich Dolesh (National Recreation and Park Association for Strategic Initiatives)
Recorded: May 22, 2018
Duration: 60 Minutes
Details: Ever felt like you struggled to establish high quality pollinator habitat or achieve the results you envisioned? This presentation will cover the three most important considerations that will determine your habitat project success and the long-term benefits of the project. This presentation will provide specific habitat recommendations from start to finish that help you produce the best results from your habitat efforts.
Presenters: Peter Berthelsen (The Bee & Butterfly Habitat Fund)
Recorded: July 20, 2017
Duration: 66 Minutes
Details: How do monarch butterfly's orient southwards during the fall migration in order to reach the overwintering sites in Mexico? How do monarchs re-orient during the spring remigration in order to return northwards? This webinar will provide an overview of how monarchs use various sensory-based orientation mechanisms for directionality. In particular, the webinar focuses on describing how monarchs employ two types of compasses that they can use to help guide them during migration, namely a time-compensated sun compass and an inclination-based magnetic compass. In addition to reviewing our basic knowledge of monarch navigation, this webinar will also describe how the use of these compasses by monarchs is potentially now under threat due to contemporary environmental stressors, such as climate change and sensory noise pollution.
Presenters: Dr. Patrick Anthony Guerra (University of Cincinnati)
Recorded: August 31, 2017
Duration: 60 Minutes
Details: Tribal Alliance for Pollinators (TAP) is the only Native-led organization dedicated to grassland restoration using locally sourced native plant seed. Learn about TAP’s history, dedication to monarch conservation, methods and hear guidance on working more effectively with tribes.
Presenters: Jane Breckenridge & Brandon Gibson
Recorded: February 22, 2022
Duration: 63 Minutes
Details: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is conducting an in-depth scientific review of the status of the monarch butterfly to determine whether it warrants listing under the Endangered Species Act. The Service has primary responsibility to protect and recover Endangered Species Act listed species and the ecosystems upon which they depend. This webinar, Understanding the Endangered Species Act, will provide the basic knowledge of the purpose of the Act and brief overview of listing, candidate conservation and regulations. Through continued habitat creation and improvements, the Service hopes to increase the number of monarch butterflies and prevent the need to list them under the Endangered Species Act.
Presenters: Karen Anderson, (USFWS)
Recorded: April 24, 2018
Duration: 54 Minutes
Details: We often think of urban areas as dead zones for wildlife habitat. However, cities can play a surprising role in conserving monarchs and pollinators. In this webinar, we’ll hear success stories and how you can get involved in conserving monarchs in cities from the Field Museum’s Urban Monarch Conservation program, the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge, and the National Wildlife Federation’s Mayor’s Monarch Pledge.
Presenters: Tracy McCleaf, Cora Lund Preston, Abigail Derby-Lewis and Patrick Fitzgerald
Recorded: August 27, 2019
Duration: 61 Minutes
Presenter: Dr. Emily Erickson
Date Recorded: 2023-02-28
Duration: 60 Minutes
Details: This episode focuses on monarch breeding and migratory habitat across the West, including updates on population patterns, new techniques for mapping habitat and an analysis of threats facing breeding and migrating monarchs.
Presenters: Amanda Barth (Utah DNR), Katie-Lyn Bunney (Monarch Joint Venture), Emma Pelton (Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation), Tom Dilts, PhD (University of Nevada, Reno) and Elizabeth Crone, PhD (Tufts University)
Recorded: July 16, 2020
Duration: 100 Minutes
Details: This webinar provides an overview of the WMCP, the current status for the Western Monarch population and federal listing decision, an update on the federal Monarch Conservation Database and opportunities to manage rights-of-way as monarch habitat.
Presenters: Amanda Barth (Utah DNR), Cat Darst (USFWS), Iris Caldwell (University of IL-Chicago) and Steven Choy (USFWS)
Recorded: June 18, 2020
Duration: 89 Minutes
Details: This webinar provides updates on overwintering habitat, including a conservation status, an explanation of habitat selection by micro-climates, grove management and actions being taken to implement the WMCP.
Presenters: Emma Pelton (Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation), Francis Villablanca, PhD (Cal Poly State University), Stephanie Little (California State Parks) Erin Chappell (California Department of Fish and Wildlife) and Samantha Marcum (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
Recorded: August 20, 2020
Duration: 78 Minutes
Details: This webinar will review evidence from different long-term datasets in the west, including the Shapiro transect from Northern California and the North American Butterfly Association summer counts, with an eye towards understanding threats (including climate change) and species or regions of particular concern.
Presenters: Matthew Forister (University of Nevada-Reno)
Recorded: April 27, 2021
Details: This webinar will explore the citizen science effort that tracks the California overwintering monarch population and will discuss the results from this year’s Western Monarch Thanksgiving Count, a record low and a 99.4% decline.
Presenters: Katie Hietala-Henschell and Emma Pelton (Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation) and Nick Stong (Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History)
Recorded: February 26, 2019
Duration: 57 Minutes
Details: Join us for a research report on the results of Dr. Yang’s three-year study of milkweed-monarch interactions, which suggest two seasonal windows of opportunity limited by climatic variation and other abiotic factors.
Presenter(s): Louie H. Yang, UC Davis
Date recorded: April 26, 2022
Duration: 62 Minutes
Details: Learn about how the Western Monarch Trail follows the migration route of the western monarch butterfly.
Duration: 54 Minutes
Date recorded: September 28, 2023
This presentation followed the guidelines for creating an audio descriptive webinar.
Presenter(s): Gabby Menomin and Maggie Lorenz of Wakaŋ Tipi Awaŋyaŋkap
Date Recorded: May 23, 2023
Duration: 56 minutes
Details: The positive emotions people feel about monarchs can be a strength used to increase conservation engagement.
Presenters: Katie-Lynn Bunney, Monarch Joint Venture and Lily Maynard, Cincinnati Zoo
Date Recorded: October 25, 2022
Duration: 63 minutes
This presentation followed the guidelines for creating an audio descriptive webinar.
Details: From a few hundred records to nearly 50,000, over the last few years, the Xerces Society and partners have built an interactive, publicly accessible database of monarch and milkweed records across the western U.S. They use crowd-sourcing and existing databases as well as conducting coordinated field surveys and engaging citizen scientists to quickly fill information gaps about where and when monarchs and their habitat are found. The database has already been used to create and improve habitat suitability models for monarchs across seven states which are being incorporated into many conservation planning and monitoring efforts. Other uses of the database include the creation of region-specific nectar guides, a better understanding of where to (and not to) plant milkweed, and influencing the prioritization of on-the-ground restoration efforts. Help us keep gathering data and putting it to good use for western monarch conservation!
Presenters: Emma Pelton and Candace Fallon (the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation)
Recorded: November 27, 2018
Duration: 61 Minutes
Details: It doesn’t take a lot of space to make valuable habitat for monarch butterflies, pollinators, and other beneficial insects that yields dividends for the agricultural landowner, as well. This webinar, delivered by the Keystone Monarch Collaborative, will make the economic and ecological case for establishing habitat adjacent to working farmland. Seth’s research and Wayne’s in-field expertise match hard numbers with hard-earned experience to convey the realities of managing for beneficial insects. They will point out several ways to get started, from maximizing the potential already embedded in field margins to pairing conservation programs with precision ag technology. Attendees can expect to leave with ways to access the locally specific resources they need to determine if habitat really does make sense on their land. This is the first of two webinars with the Keystone Monarch Collaborative this summer for agricultural landowners and managers. The second on July 23rd will dive into the trials and triumphs of those who have attempted to establish habitat plantings.
Presenters: Jonathan Geurts (Keystone Policy Center), Wayne Fredericks (American Soybean Association), Seth Appelgate (Iowa State University Monarch Research Team) and Jennifer Prenosil (Pheasants Forever)
Recorded: May 28, 2019
Duration: 68 Minutes
