Monarch Butterfly The Subject Of Class
A Monarch butterfly waits for its wings to dry out before taking flight.
Oskaloosa, Iowa – With the decline in recent years of milkweed, the population of the monarch butterfly plummeted.
Individuals took it upon themselves to help the species survive. They began collecting the eggs, offering protection until the butterfly was ready to take flight.
Minnie Richardson and her family are some of those people who have dedicated themselves to helping the species survive.
Richardson spoke this past week at the ISU Extension Office, sharing her experiences and knowledge learned during the past years of raising Monarch butterflies.
The group of Monarch butterflies that are emerging now, and are the final generation of the year, are flying to the mountains of Mexico and will live out the winter, living until March or April. The fourth generation of Monarchs live much longer than the first three generations.
The first generation is the offspring of those that winter in Mexico, they emerge in late March and early April and begin to head north.
The second generation of Monarch’s that live here in Iowa, may only live two to six weeks and are seen around Iowa in June and July.
The third generation feeds on milkweed, a poisonous plant, and mature later, as do the fourth generation.
It’s believed the milkweed is the Monarch’s secret weapon to keep them from being preyed upon.
Nearly 40 people listened to Richards about how she helps to ensure the survival of the butterflies locally.
For Richardson, the interest in butterflies stems from a visit to the Iowa State Fair, and a butterfly tent that was set up. Richardson and her young daughters sat inside the tent for hours, “and we got covered in butterflies and it was so fun.”
“One year, as we were leaving, they were selling Monarch caterpillars for five bucks,” said Richardson. “So we bought it and brought it home.”
“The rest is history,” says Richardson.
Richardson gave her first presentation on the subject of Monarchs last year at the ISU Extension office.
Richardson is also a substitute teacher at the Oskaloosa School District, and she’s often found with a monarch that is about to open, or also giving presentations to advance biology classes. “I let them hold it [butterfly] in the afternoon after it comes out [of the chrysalis]. They all get to touch it. Even the kids that are freaked out by bugs and insects get to hold it.”
Richardson had a larger crop of butterflies this year than in years past because she and her family found more eggs than in years past.
Finding those eggs on milkweed plants will be coming to an end, as the Monarchs are finishing out their time here in Iowa, and will be making their way to central Mexico in the coming weeks.
