Monarchs are My Thing — Here’s Why They Need Our Help

By Meredith Volk

I’m obsessed with Monarch butterflies.

As a child, I saw (or dreamed about) a bush outside my window full of Monarch butterflies. The image — and my obsession with these butterflies — has stuck with me ever since. In 2003, I spent eight months in Mexico, where I saw millions of them during mating season. The blue sky was swirling with millions of flecks of golden glitter as far as the eye could and the tree branches were packed with these jewel-toned creatures. 

Sadly, there has been a devastating drop in the Monarch population (see this amazing New Yorker article), but if enough people in the migration path (from Mexico to Canada) planted native milkweed and nectar plant the right efforts in the right places, we could prevent them from becoming extinct. 

The good news: Growing native milkweed from seeds is really easy; it’s not called a weed for nothing. Check out the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s page on how you can help. A friend and I were thinking about an app that gives people information about how to help in their area. If any other TueNighters are as obsessed as I am with these butterflies, let’s connect in the TueNighters group!

Originally Published May 14, 2021. Updated May 18, 2021.