#Middlebury #Monarchs
A Monarch butterfly rests on a milkweed plant. Milkweed is essential to this butterfly’s survival. (Submitted photo)
Members of the Pomperaug Valley Garden Club will present the hour-long PBS Nova film “The Incredible Journey of the Butterflies” at The Studio at Flanders Nature Center and Land Trust Tuesday, March 19, at 7 p.m. A discussion of the current status of Monarchs, the Monarch Waystation at Flanders, and tips on how to create a butterfly-friendly garden will follow.
In 2011, the garden club installed a “Monarch Waystation” adjacent to the Flanders’ Sugar House, in an effort to provide desperately needed habitat for Monarch butterflies. The Monarchs, which numbered 1 billion as recently as 1996, have declined in numbers by more than 90 percent since the 1990s. The most significant factor in their decline is the loss of larval and nectar habitat – milkweed in particular – and nectar sources in general.
A 2016 report led by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, found there is a substantial chance of quasi-extinction over the next 20 years. That is when so few remaining individuals are left that recovery is impossible. While the remaining individuals may survive for a short time, the population as a whole will inevitably go extinct. The federal government is currently reviewing the monarchs for Endangered Species status.
The Flanders’ Studio is on the corner of Flanders Road and Church Hill Road in Woodbury. The fee for this event is $10 for Flanders members or $15 for nonmembers. Register online at www.flandersnaturecenter.org or by calling 203-263-3711, ext. 10, for more information.
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