Tremont announces dates for Monarch butterfly tagging

(Great Smoky Mountains) – Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont is once again looking for volunteers to help net, tag, and release Monarch butterflies in Cades Cove this October.  Tremont is working with local naturalist Wanda DeWaard to lead groups of volunteers on Saturday October 13, Tuesday October 16, and Tuesday October 30.

Every autumn, Monarchs east of the Mississippi River, some as far away as Canada, begin their migration back to their wintering grounds in central Mexico.   The Monarch is the only butterfly in the world that migrates.  The butterflies are 3-4 generations removed from the butterflies that began the journey north from Mexico in the spring, so they have never been to the wintering grounds before.  Scientists are still trying to understand how the Monarchs find their way back to their wintering grounds, where they congregate in 6-7 areas in the Transvolcanic Mountains.  Each of these areas is only a few acres in size, but Monarchs reach densities of 10 million butterflies per acre.  Trees shake and limbs break from the weight of butterflies!

In recent years there has been concern about the fate of the Monarch butterfly.  In their summer grounds, which include much of the U.S. and southern Canada, the butterfly is negatively affected by increased industrial-style farming or “clean” farming, which dramatically reduces milkweed, the Monarch’s host plant, as well as nectar sources for adults.  Habitat destruction and pesticide use also threaten Monarch populations.  In the wintering grounds, illegal logging and increased human pressures place additional strains on the Monarch population.

To help track population trends and migration routes, the University of Kansas established Monarch Watch, a citizen science program that uses volunteers to capture and tag Monarchs.  Once the butterflies reach their wintering grounds, locals look for tagged butterflies.  They then can determine where the butterfly was tagged and can get an idea of the survival rate of migrating Monarchs.  Last year, Tremont volunteers helped tag 121 Monarch butterflies in Cades Cove.   

If you would like to help tag Monarchs, please contact Tremont Citizen Science Director Jason Love at (865) 448-9732 ext. 14 or Jason@gsmit.org.  Each session is limited to 25-30 people and there is no age limit.  The program is free, but participants must sign waivers to participate.

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