Monarch Migration
Each fall the monarch butterfly travels thousands of miles to spend the winter in the forests on 12 mountaintops in central Mexico. The monarch migration is the most spectacular two-way migration carried out by an insect.
The forests provide unique microclimatic conditions that allow monarchs to survive the winter. Forest degradation is putting this amazing migration in peril.
The abundance of monarchs shows a discouraging downward trend over the past 20+ years. Click on the graph to enlarge and on this link to read how the numbers were obtained.
In the Spotlight
Monarchs are on their way to Mexico and it’s time for us to remember Lincoln, his love for monarchs and his commitment to their conservation. We are very excited to report that thanks to the support of all those whose lives were touched by Lincoln, MBF has established the “Lincoln P. Brower Award” fund with $16,500 dollars! This will allow us to offer $3,000 annual awards to undergraduate or graduate students for research on monarch butterfly conservation and their habitats for 5+ years. The requirements to apply can be found on the grants tab. If you wish to make a contribution to the fund please go to the donations page and make sure you send an email to Karen Oberhauser (koberhauser@wisc.edu) or Monica Missrie (oyamel@yahoo.com) indicating that you would like your contribution to be designated to the “Lincoln P. Brower Award” fund.