The Gardens on Spring Creek

  Migrating Monarch Conservation Gardening  by Brionna McCumber This past winter, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed a rule to list monarch butterflies as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The iconic migration along the east side of the Rocky Mountains sees monarchs flying from as far north as Canada down to the Oyamel forests in Mexico. Most of these butterflies travel through the Great Plains region of the United States, with the Front Range serving as the western boundary of their migratory pathway. Starting in March, monarchs begin their journey north again, reproducing and laying eggs along the way. Their northward migration continues over multiple generations, limited by the availability of milkweed host plants and nectar sources for adult butterflies. This cycle persists throughout the summer until late August, when the migration south begins once more. In December 2024, the overwintering populations occupied 4.42 acres of forest in Mexico—nearly d...