Rescued Butterflies Helped Spread the Message of Conservation at Buckley Space Force Base, Fort Carson

A biologist helped place small stickers on two bright orange Monarch butterflies Thursday at Buckley Space Force Base before they flitted off to start their fall journey south to Mexico.

The butterflies were rescued and raised in Kate Stander’s dining room, fed on milkweed from her garden as caterpillars and protected by mesh enclosures. They were two of hundreds of butterflies Stander has rescued over about 10 years largely as eggs from milkweed plants that were slated for mowing in Thornton.

Several of her butterflies have been identified again by their stickers or tags in Mexico at the end of their migration, she said. The tagging program through Monarch Watch provides data on numerous factors such as the Monarch’s migration and changes in their geographic distribution.

For Stander, who volunteers with several groups including Colorado Monarch Ambassadors, it validates her own efforts.

“That’s rewarding to at least know it’s working,” said Stander.

A Monarch butterfly makes a momentary stop at the top of a willow after being released at Buckley Space Force Base on Thursday, Sept. 1, 2024. Monarch Joint Venture, a nonprofit that supports Monarch populations, has been working with the Department of Defense at Buckley, Fort Carson and 53 other military installations to monitor the populations and restore the insects' habitat, including milkweed plants.

Last week, the butterflies themselves played the role of ambassadors as they glided away for the TV cameras as experts including Mercy Manzanares, program coordinator with Monarch Joint Venture, explained efforts to support Monarch populations on military installations.

The nonprofit is working with the Department of Defense at Buckley, Fort Carson and 53 other military installations to monitor the populations and restore the insects’ habitat, including milkweed, the host plant Monarch caterpillars feed on. The plant makes them poisonous to predators.

Monarch butterfly populations have been in decline over the last 20 years, with the populations east of the Rocky Mountains dropping 48% to 69%. West of the Rocky Mountains populations have dropped 99%, Manzanares said.

The butterflies technically qualify for listing as a federally endangered species, although they have not yet made the list, explained Veronica Reed, the Fish and Wildlife biologist stationed at Buckley. The populations have been hurt by numerous factors, such as climate change, invasive weeds and the loss of grasslands to agriculture and development.

“Grasslands are the single most endangered ecosystem on the planet currently,” Reed said.

Mercy Manzanares, program coordinator with Monarch Joint Venture, and Veronica Reed, the Fish and Wildlife biologist stationed at Buckley Space Force Base, release a Monarch butterfly at Buckley Space Force Base on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. After the release, the Monarch will hopefully make the long migration to Mexico. Monarch Joint Venture, a nonprofit that supports Monarch populations, has been working with the Department of Defense at Buckley, Fort Carson and 53 other military installations to monitor the populations and restore the insects' habitat, including milkweed plants.

Work to restore Monarch habitat has the umbrella effect of also protecting other native grassland species such as grasses, birds and other native insects, Reed said.

Reed started working to support Monarchs at Buckley started last year and so far has led the work to reseed 20 acres with native grasses, with another 10 to 15 acres slated to be reseeded in October. Another 250 milkweed seedlings went in at the base last year, Reed said.

Population surveys showed far more butterflies last year, with Reed seeing one per day. Since the surveys started in July, surveyors have seen two, she said.

Hot, dry conditions that hurt the flowering plants could be contributing to the lower numbers. Reed hopes to see more as the fall migration south continues.

Similar work is taking place at Fort Carson, with the creation of 10 acres of high quality pollinator habitat near west Haymes Reservoir, southwest of Butts Army Airfield, a Fort Carson official said in a statement.

Veronica Reed, the Fish and Wildlife biologist stationed at Buckley Space Force Base, shows a couple of stage 2 caterpillars found on a milkweed plant at the base on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. Monarch Joint Venture, a nonprofit that supports Monarch populations, has been working with the Department of Defense at Buckley, Fort Carson and 53 other military installations to monitor the populations and restore the insects' habitat, including milkweed plants.

Researchers also surveyed for butterflies last year on Fort Carson and at the Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site, northeast of Trinidad. The year’s surveys are ongoing, so there is not enough data to indicate a trend, the statement said. The data will be used to inform best management practices for the land, such as mowing and prescribed burns. Mowing too frequently doesn’t give the butterflies enough time to complete their life cycle, Stander said.

As one of the largest land managers in the country with almost 25 million acres of land, the Department of Defense has lots of opportunity for conservation. The bases across the country are home to 500 endangered species and 55 of those are only found on DOD lands, according to the military.

“They are wonderful stewards of habitat,” Manzanares said.

Veronica Reed, the Fish and Wildlife biologist stationed at Buckley Space Force Base, looks underneath the leaves of a milkweed plant for Monarch butterfly chrysalis or caterpillars on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. Monarch Joint Venture, a nonprofit that supports Monarch populations, has been working with the Department of Defense at Buckley, Fort Carson and 53 other military installations to monitor the populations and restore the insects' habitat, including milkweed plants.

Residents also help encourage Monarch populations by planting showy milkweed to support caterpillars and native flowering plants.

The Colorado Butterfly Monitoring Network offers volunteer opportunities to collect data on butterflies at butterflies.org/research-and-conserve/butterfly-monitoring.

The Monarch Joint Venture also offers lots of info on supporting the butterflies at monarchjointventure.org.

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