As luck would have it, I’ve discovered two monarch butterflies since my last post. Monarch butterflies are now an endangered species, and every time I spot one, I ponder the increasingly perilous journey they make in the fall and spring. The ones I’ve encountered are usually traveling solo.
This week, the Journal Star reported that nature lovers across the state are seeing fewer of these majestic creatures, as well. Conservation Nebraska is asking for photos of monarchs to better track and count monarch butterfly populations in the state. Naturally, I sent them photos of this week’s two monarchs.
Monarch #1
8/13/2022: Crane Trust, Wood River, NE.
The Crane Trust, the non-profit habitat conservation organization situated on the Platte River, is the famous migratory spot for sandhill and whooping cranes and other wildlife.
We visited the Crane Trust in on a hot summer’s day. The Platte was shallow, and we watched sandpipers fishing along the puddles there. Some of the trails were gated off from the public to accommodate the resident bison herd in their mating season. It was a very quiet afternoon–few people braving the heat–but there was definitely life to be seen, like this monarch enjoying the milkweed in front of the visitors’ center.
Monarch #2
8/15/2022: Governor’s Residence, Lincoln, NE
The butterfly bushes (salvia?) outside the Nebraska Governor’s Residence are a popular downtown “lunch stop” for visiting butterflies. This is where I spotted the black swallowtail and the skipper.
Both the Crane Trust and Governor’s Residence monarchs (as far as I can tell) were female. In my limited knowledge as a neighborhood observer, I have no way of knowing if the prevalence of females as opposed to males means something. I could just be that of the few butterflies I’ve seen, these just happen to be female. Determining sex is easy once you know what to look for: males have thinner black wing veins and a specific dot on their hindwings. This illustration is helpful.
As the season continues, I will be looking for butterflies in the neighborhood and posting my findings. I am already thinking ahead to next year and what sort of plants I might mindfully add to the front of my building (alongside cosmos, coneflowers, and zinnias) to attract more winged visitors. Milkweed, obviously, but also salvia and sedum. I want to do my part to help these creatures.
🦋
