On Nov. 20, the California State Parks Foundation released a new report about the importance of California State Parks for the survival of the Western Monarch Butterfly.
Millions of the butterflies used to return to California every winter but this year, their numbers have dwindled.
Monarchs like to hang out in clusters in trees and spend a lot of their winter in California state parks. But fewer butterflies return each year to California, according to a recent report from the California State Parks Foundation, a review of 26 years of data.
In 2022, the Pismo Beach monarch count was a little more than 24,000. In 2023, it dropped to around 16,000.
On Friday, Monique McKinney and her family visited the Pismo Beach State Park Monarch Butterfly Grove to check out the butterflies on their way to San Francisco.
“It's sad to see the monarchs are on the brink of extinction so they are dwindling in number and it's sad to see there are fewer of them than reported in past years,” McKinney said.
According to the report, the decline is linked to habitat loss, pesticides, diseases, and climate change.
“We used to get thousands at home every December to January but we have barely seen even a couple in the past couple years," said visitor Glenn Egelko.
This year's mid-season count takes place from Nov. 16 to Dec. 8, providing an update on the western monarch population and an opportunity to talk about conservation efforts.
“I'd love to help in any way I can to preserve the areas where they congregate,” said visitor Lauren Gibbons.
The overall goal is to preserve the future of monarch butterflies, and there are ways to help out.
“By volunteering, planting nectar plants and nectar weeds, donating to the foundation or another local organization,” said Randy Widera, Director of Programs at the California State Parks Foundation.
“We love butterflies and hopefully they can stay here for generations to come,” Gibbons said.
For more information on how you can get involved visit this website.
