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Monarch butterflies cling together on branch
Researchers at Michigan State University, studying the decline of monarch butterflies, found that a critical piece of the butterfly’s annual cycle was missing: fall migration. By focusing on this southerly trek, as well as changing the scale at which winter populations are examined, scientists reveal a wider, more-accurate spectrum of threats that have contributed to the monarch population’s downward trend.
Learn more about this research, supported by the National Science Foundation (grants DEB 1702635 and DEB 1702179), in the Michigan State University news story When it comes to monarchs, fall migration matters. (Date image taken: unknown; date originally posted to NSF Multimedia Gallery: May 29, 2019)
Credit: Photo by Kelly Nail/Michigan State University
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