Skip to Content

WAFWA/MJV Webinar series—Out West: Western Monarch Conservation Efforts

Jun 05, 2020

The Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agency’s Western Monarch Working Group is pleased to join Monarch Joint Venture and NCTC to present a 3-part summer webinar series, “Out West: Western Monarch Conservation Efforts” that will address national policy updates, current research, and monitoring work that affect the western population of monarch butterflies.
This series is aimed at providing a path for state-level implementation of strategies in the 2019 Western Monarch Conservation Plan (WMCP) in place of the annual "Take Flight" conference with sectors and stakeholders, to be followed with an in-person meeting in 2021.

  • June webinar speakers will cover an overview of the WMCP, the current status for the Western Monarch population and listing decision, an update on the federal Monarch Conservation Database, and opportunities to manage rights-of-way as monarch habitat.
  • July speakers will focus on monarch breeding and migratory habitat across the West, including updates on population patterns, new techniques for mapping habitat, and an analysis of threats facing breeding and migrating monarchs.
  • August speakers will provide updates on overwintering habitat, including a conservation status, an explanation of habitat selection by micro-climates, grove management, and actions being taken to implement the WMCP.

 

Each episode will be held on the third Thursday of the month for June, July, and August, from 10:00-11:30 am PST. This series is public and we invite you to attend.

Register at the links below.

Out West Webinar Details:

  • Thursday, June 18, 2020 – 10:00-11:30 am PST: Monarch Policy Update 
  • REGISTER HERE
  1. Amanda Barth (Utah Dept. of Natural Resources | WMWG Chair) – Overview of Western Monarch Conservation Plan 2019
  2. Cat Darst (USFWS) – Western Monarch population status/SSA/ESA listing
  3. Steven Choy (USFWS) – Monarch Conservation Database
  4. Iris Caldwell (University of Illinois—Chicago) – Monarch ROW CCAA in the Western US
  5. Q&A

 

  • Thursday, July 16, 2020 – 10:00-11:30 am PST: Breeding/Migratory Habitat 
  • REGISTER HERE
  1. Emma Pelton (Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation) – Update on current breeding and migratory patterns and monarch populations in the west
  2. Tom Dilts, PhD (University of Nevada, Reno) – Mapping monarch habitat (protocols and technology)
  3. Elizabeth Crone, PhD (Tufts University) – Updated insights on threats to western monarch persistence
  4. Q&A

 

  • Thursday, August 20, 2020 – 10:00-11:30 am PST: Overwintering Habitat 
  • REGISTER HERE
  1. Emma Pelton (Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation) – Overwintering status and conservation update
  2. Francis Villablanca, PhD (Cal Poly State University) – Overwintering habitat selection and microclimates
  3. Stephanie Little (California State Parks) – Overwintering Grove Plan development and implementation
  4. Erin Chappell/Samantha Marcum (WMWG | Overwintering Land Managers Group) – Overwintering actions and progress from WMCP
  5. Q&A


WAFWA's Conservation Plan (WMCP) can be viewed here.

We hope you can attend this webinar series!

 

The Monarch Joint Venture is a national partnership of federal and state agencies, non-governmental organizations, businesses and academic programs working together to conserve the monarch butterfly migration. The content in this article does not necessarily reflect the positions of all Monarch Joint Venture partners. Header photo of overwintering monarchs in California provided by Wendy Caldwell.

News Categories