Marin Monarch Working Group

Western monarch butterflies used to be a common sight in Marin. But the number of monarchs in Marin has declined by 99% since the 1980s.

Causes of this decline include climate change, habitat loss, parasites, and pesticide use.

It’s not too late to act…but the time to act is now. Join us to learn how you can help!

What’s New???

MMWG recognized by Marin Board of Supervisors for public education, citizen science, and advocacy

Members of the MMWG steering committee, some resplendent in monarch-themed attire, recently accepted the 2024 Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Award from the Marin Board of Supervisors on behalf of the group. This award is presented annually to “the person, county employee, or organization deserving of special recognition due to their support of the tenets of IPM.” The commendation acknowledged the MMWG for creating “much needed opportunities for education about the impacts of pesticides on the beloved monarch butterfly, in addition to facilitating citizen science programs and advocacy.” Check out the IPM Commission webpage for more info on our award.

Some of MMWG’s activities and contributions related to IPM include the following:

  • Public education: Spreading the word about the importance of IPM for the health of the monarch butterfly via 1) social media as well as our website and monthly newsletter; 2) tabling at numerous events throughout the county; and 3) field trips to visit native plant gardens in public urban spaces as well as open space and agricultural lands

  • Advocacy: Assisting with the development of the Marin Biodiversity Corridor Initiative and other policy proposals to support best practices for habitat restoration and species protection

  • Habitat restoration: Providing native milkweed seedlings and plants for school gardens and monarch way stations in several local schools; assisting in the development of several pesticide-free native plant gardens including sites at Marin Humane and Fairfax Library; working to protect and restore overwintering sites for monarch butterflies along the coast

  • Scientific discovery: Participating in community science projects to document factors affecting the welfare of the monarch butterfly, including the Western Monarch Count, the International Monarch Bioblitz, and the 2024 Butterfly Count sponsored by the Southwest Monarch Project

Dana Swisher, Mia Monroe, and Ed Nute, longstanding leaders in the effort to support monarch butterflies and other native species

This year the Marin County fair will celebrate all things flittery, fluttery, buzzy, creepy, crawly, sticky, prickly, and wiggly.

🦋 Be sure to check out the Marin Monarch Working Group exhibit at the Fair 🦋

🐛 Learn about the monarch life cycle and incredible migration journey

🐛 Find out how to create a monarch waystation in your home garden

🐛 See examples of monarch gardens in Marin – in homes, school yards, libraries, traffic medians, and more

🐛 Become a community scientist – learn how to monitor monarch activity and contribute to crucial data for scientists and policy makers

🌿 Don’t miss this opportunity to connect with nature and become a part of the monarch conservation movement. 🌿

When: July 2-6, 2025

Where: 10 Avenue of the Flags in San Rafael

See you there! 🐛➡️🦋

Fire-wise landscaping and native plant gardens 

As fire season gets underway, the county is encouraging property owners to minimize the chances that garden plants will provide fuel for flames. Do some of these suggestions run counter to recommendations for creating a thriving native plant garden for pollinators? Yes, to an extent, but there are workarounds that can satisfy both goals. As the images above suggest, there are a number of ways to achieve a fire-smart garden.

Two issues come to the fore in planning a fire-wise garden. One pertains to plant choice and the other to the use of mulch on the surface of the soil.

With respect to plant choice, there are many types of native trees and pollinator plants that are fire resistant. However, some are not, including for example manzanitas, coyote brush, and California buckwheat. If you are selecting new plants, this list of fire-resistant and fire-prone plants can be very helpful. In general, less fire-prone plants have leaves that are high in moisture, contain relatively less wax, oil, and resin, and have an open structure.

With respect to the space around the plants, native plant gardeners have typically been advised to allow organic matter to remain on the surface of the soil in order to accommodate plant self-seeding and to provide habitat for insects and other creatures. Current fire-safe advice is less supportive of leaf litter, specifying the removal of dry, woody vegetation including clumps of fallen leaves and pine needles, particularly near structures.

Similar to general advice on native plant gardening, fire-safe versions acknowledge the role of organic mulch in conserving soil moisture, impeding the grown of weeds and adding organic matter as it breaks down. However, fire-safe versions commonly recommend that gardeners use nonorganic mulch such as rocks and gravel in the five foot zone surrounding homes and other structures, and suggest that nonorganic mulch also be used to demarcate plant “islands.” Fire-safe advisors further suggest that between five and 30 feet from structures, gardeners should select composited wood chips — rather than fine, stringy mulches — to a depth of only two inches with another inch permissible in the case of large gardens extending more than 30 feet beyond the structures.

So the gardener has a considerable latitude in creating a fire-safe native plant garden, but achieving this goal requires careful thought about how to approach plant selection and placement as well as ways to create healthy soil conditions for the plants and resident insects, birds, and other creatures. To obtain detailed information on these topics, consult these helpful guides by Fire Safe Marin and the Marin Master Gardeners.

The International Monarch Monitoring Bioblitz will soon happen across Canada, Mexico and the US !

July 25 through August 3, 2025

The Bioblitz is a community science data collection effort. During the Bioblitz, community members take pictures of monarchs and submit them to scientists who then generate a continent-wide dataset from all these images.

This information will guide habitat restoration and other policies to protect them.

You can spend as much time on this project as you wish. Go out on your own, with a friend, or join a group organized by the Marin Monarch Working Group. Basically, you just go outside and look for monarchs – butterflies, caterpillars, and eggs -- and for milkweed. You can visit local parks, gardens, roadsides….anywhere you might find a monarch!

Then submit your photos via the iNaturalist app or the monarch milkweed mapper website (monarchmilkweedmapper.org). Interested?

The Western Monarch Milkweed Mapper website has lots of helpful information about how to identify monarchs and milkweed, how to photograph them, and how to submit your data.

SAVE THE DATE!

Do you want to take part in a local field trip to spot and photograph monarchs? The Marin Monarch Working Group (MMWG) is organizing one on July 29. And will also provide a list of special monarch waystations you can go on your own or with a friend during the count period. Details to follow shortly!

Who We Are

The Marin Monarch Working Group was established in 2019 to address the existential crisis facing the western monarch, one of California’s most iconic creatures. Our group includes educators and advocates, biologists and botanists, gardeners and monarch lovers.

Public Education

We disseminate science-based information.

Advocacy

We advocate for policies and practices that promote monarch welfare.

Monitoring

We support community science efforts to monitor monarch welfare.

Habitat Restoration

We create and restore monarch habitats in open and public spaces.

Join our mailing list

Those on the mailing list receive an email invitation to attend our monthly MMWG zoom meetings, where we share updates and plan actions to protect the monarch and its habitat.

Please consider making a donation

Your donations will be used to support the advocacy, education, and habitat restoration efforts of our volunteers.

Prefer to donate by check? Make your check out to Turtle Island Restoration Network/MMWG and send it to TIRM, Attn. Audrey Fusco, PO Box 370, Forest Knolls, CA 94933.

MMWG is fiscally sponsored by Turtle Island Restoration Network (TIRN), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. EIN 91-1818080