The Georgia Department of Natural Resources is seeking help once again from monarch butterfly enthusiasts. Volunteers from the Southeast and Gulf states have provided more than 6, 300 observations of monarchs during winter since 2020. For Winter 2025-26 winter, the partnership of universities, agencies and other organizations called Monarchs Overwintering in the Southeastern States, or MOVERS, is requesting the public’s continued involvement in reporting sightings. Susan Meyers, a volunteer with Monarchs Across Georgia, emphasized that volunteers are vital to this effort. “If you enjoy being outdoors and exploring your local ecosystem, this is an easy activity that can be done alone or with friends or your family,” Meyers said. Project partners are grateful for the nearly 850 sightings reported last winter, said Anna Yellin, a wildlife biologist with Georgia DNR’s Wildlife Resources Division. “When we come together as a community as we have here, we stand a better chance of protecting the monarch butterfly for future generations.” Dr. Sonia Altizer, a University of Georgia ecology professor and director of Project Monarch Health, said the information can help scientists determine if the iconic, but declining, butterflies “can overwinter as non-breeding adults in the southern U. S. and how this might affect future population numbers.” The monitoring also may shed light on whether winter-breeding activity affects their annual migration to Mexico. Understanding migration and overwintering behavior is crucial to conserving monarchs, a candidate for listing under the Endangered Species Act. Thousands of monarch butterflies stream across the South each fall to wintering grounds in central Mexico. In the spring, members of this eastern population of the butterfly return to the U. S. and Canada to breed. But not all monarchs migrate to Mexico. Volunteer observations over the past two decades have helped scientists better understand how and why some monarchs breed throughout the winter in the southern U. S. Scattered reports suggest that some monarchs can overwinter in coastal regions in a non-breeding state, similar to their wintering behavior in Mexico. Gabriela Garrison of the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission noted that the monarch is a species of greatest conservation need in North Carolina’s Wildlife Action Plan, as it is in the wildlife action plans of Georgia and many other states. “So monitoring overwintering populations and learning more about their behavior is critical,” Garrison said. The public is encouraged to report all monarch sightings (including adults, eggs, larvae and pupae) from November to March in Georgia, the Carolinas, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas. Photographs and details about what the monarchs are doing such as resting, flying, laying eggs or drinking nectar or water can help scientists determine their migratory status and habitat needs. Observations can be submitted either through the “Journey North” online data portal or by using the iNaturalist app or website. To join the iNaturalist monarch winter project, go to:.
https://www.statesboroherald.com/local/georgia-dnr-project-seeks-publics-help-in-counting-monarch-butterflies-during-the-winters/
Georgia DNR project seeks public’s help in counting monarch butterflies during the winters
