8 Nebraska Game and Parks Commission • 2016 Annual Report
M O N A R C H B U T T E R F L Y C O N S E R V A T I O N
E F F O R T S
The Commission is committed to leading and coordinating
efforts for monarch butterfly and pollinator conservation in
Nebraska. A monarch summit was held in February to express
ideas and concerns regarding Nebraska's approach to monarch
conservation. The monarch butterfly population has declined 90
percent in the last 20 years. There are many factors contributing
to the decline, but the plight of the monarch is gaining attention.
The monarch is under consideration for protection under
the Endangered Species Act, and the International Union for
Conservation of Nature has designated the monarch migration
a threatened phenomenon. North American wildlife managers
have recommended that the Eastern monarch population be
restored to 225 million butterflies. To achieve this, the national
call to action is to restore or enhance 7 million acres of land
for pollinators and add 1.25-to 1.5 billion stems of milkweed to
breeding grounds.
With planning underway, monarch and pollinator habitat efforts
are already an agency wide priority with efforts to provide new
habitat, provide seed sources for additional habitat restorations,
provide visible demonstration sites for monarch and pollinator
MONARCH
BUTTERFLIES
FEED
ON
BUTTERFLY
MILKWEED
PLANTS
IN
A
RESTORED
PRAIRIE
WHOOPING
CRANES
