Counting Monarchs in Mexico

 

After biking 10,201 miles following the monarch butterfly migration , two things were clear to me:

 

1. I wanted to continue to combine my love of conservation, education, and science with my love of monarch butterflies.

2. I wanted to invite my friends living near the monarch overwintering sanctuary to help me answer a question about steaming, a never-before-studied monarch behavior.

 

I first experienced streaming monarchs on the first day of my bike adventure. I came around a bend and was engulfed in a current of butterflies. I felt like I was coasting in a river of orange wings. Scientists speculate this behavior is to find water, but mostly the behavior remains a mystery.

 

In 2020, I began to look for the answer with the help of ten women living within five km of the El Rosario overwintering colony. I trained and then paid these women to count the monarchs streaming alongside their houses three times daily. Together, we were able to count 38,000 streaming monarchs in six weeks, and link monarch behavior to weather conditions. We were also able to offer women a chance to be scientists, work from home, and form a deeper connection to their butterfly neighbors. 

I am ready to return and continue the project, but I need your help. I am raising money to expand the project from 10 to 21 households and pair these houses with more complex weather loggers . My goal is three fold:

 

1. Invite more women living near the overwintering monarchs to be scientists and earn a modest income.

2. Better understand why, when, and where monarchs stream.

3. Collect baseline data so we can better track how climate change is affecting the monarchs and their migration.

 

You can learn more by scrolling through our FAQs below. Thank you so much for supporting monarchs, sustainable economies in Mexico, and inclusive science. It is an honor to make this project a reality.

Sara Dykman

Author of Bicycling with Butterflies 
co-founder of Beyond A Book 

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FAQs:

What is streaming, and why is it important to understand this behavior?

On warm days monarchs can be seen flying up and down the mountains. This streaming behavior may be to search out water, jumpstart reproductive development (by increasing metabolism), or some unknown reason or combination of reasons. All current information is based off of antidotal observations, so much of the behavior remains a mystery.

What we do know is that monarchs survive winter by relying on their fat reserves accumulated during their fall migration. Since streaming burns calories, we can assume this behavior puts monarchs at risk of starvation. We also know that streaming increases on warm days and that climate change effects will likely increase the number of warm winter days in Mexico. Thus it is important to gather baseline data and track any changes to monarch streaming, the timeline of the migration, and if less monarchs are finding their reserves too low to complete the remigration north in the spring.
 
Why are sustainable economies important for the monarchs?

While the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve offers monarchs and their forest home protection for resource extraction, the truth is the land can’t be protected if people living in the area don’t have options for earning a living and supporting their families. The best way to protect the forest in Mexico is to offer the people living nearby incentives to be stewards and opportunities beyond logging, grazing, and mining. While counting monarchs offers only a modest salary, it is one more tool in the conservation toolbox.
 
Where is all this money going?

Here is a breakdown of the budget. A more detailed budget can be found here .

32% Participant Salaries
32% Equipment (Can be used for multiple seasons; includes weather loggers , watches, binders, old cell phones, windsocks)
16% Taxes and Go Fund Me Fees
12% Sara’s Salary
9% Equipment (Single use items like data sheets and batteries)
 
Who are the women participating in the study?

The ten women who participated in the 2020 preliminary study lived within five kilometers of the El Rosario overwintering sanctuary. All those selected were stay-at-home moms, responsible for household chores and family care. This meant they could be available to count monarchs three times daily, earn an income, and be scientists.

What happens if we earn more than our goal?

Excess money will be used to support Fondo de Conservacion del Eje Neovolcanico  (The Neovolcanic Belt Conservation Fund), an institution in Mexico currently training and employing student monitors at four monarch sanctuaries (up to $5,000). Any remaining funds will be used to fund another season of monarch steaming research.

What is the long term goal?
 
The long term goal is to establish a program that will continue to monitor streaming monarchs as a way to support local women, create a conservation economy, and determine trend and changes in streaming behavior. Our long term vision includes expanding the number of participants at El Rosario, expanding research to other overwintering colonies, and promoting women to leadership roles.


How is the data going to be used?

With the support of Dr. Chip Taylor  (University of Kansas, Monarch Watch) and Dr. Frank Fogarty III  (Cal Poly Humboldt) we will look for patterns in monarch abundance and weather conditions, as well as seasonal patterns, and (in the future) trends in behavior. This information will help better explain overwintering ecology and help document changes due to climate change.

What data did the preliminary study produce?

In our 2020 preliminary study we counted over 38,000 streaming monarchs in six weeks (we want to expand to twenty weeks this winter!). Our preliminary study confirmed that community science is a feasible method for collecting data. Our initial analysis also corroborated our most basic hypothesis (monarchs are more active in warmer weather), which means that our data set is robust enough to identify patterns!

Where can I learn more about Sara’s bike tour following the monarchs?

People interested in learning more about Sara’s eight month bike tour can visit www.beyondabook.org or read her book, Bicycling with Butterflies.
 
Where can I read your scientific report?

Read the preliminary study here.

How else can I help?

We also need old, good condition smart phones (for taking photos of cloud conditions and some video of streaming behaviour.

Tell your friends, family, and neighbors about Counting Monarchs.

And of course PLANT NATIVES. Monarch caterpillars need milkweed and adults need nectar to power the migration and survive the winter.

How can I learn more?

You can contact us via Go Fund Me or at http://www.beyondabook.org/contact-us.

THANKS!!!