Description
The public is welcome to the City of Cambridge's 8th Annual Monarch Butterfly Release Celebration, hosted by the Cambridge Water Department at Fresh Pond Reservation.
What we accomplish with this project:
- Boosting local Monarch populations through a robust raise-and-release program
- Educating the public on the Monarch's migration and life history, plus the threats they face
- Continuously improving Monarch habitat by planting milkweed, building and expanding healthy meadows, and removing invasive plants at Fresh Pond Reservation
August 28th 2022:
2:00pm - The gates will open to the back lawn on the Cambridge Water Department building where visitors can meet and greet the Monarchs, learn about our raise-and-release project, peruse educational materials, work on Jr. Ranger Badge activity booklets, participate in crafts, and learn more about milkweed and meadows from the Friends of Fresh Pond
2:15pm - Storyteller Yumi Izuyama will begin "A Monarch Finds her Home in Cambridge" - a traditional Japanese storytelling style called Kamishibai
2:40pm - Walk from the Celebration Area to our release site at Kingsley Park (3 minute walk)
2:45pm - Releasing of the Monarchs at Kingsley Park
3:00pm - Visitors are welcome back to the Celebration Area to continue reviewing educational materials and finish up their Jr. Ranger Badge activity booklets
Unfortunately, this inspiring species is threatened worldwide and recently added to the "Red List" by IUCN. In North America, the population is estimated to have dropped by nearly 90% from the 1990s to the present day. While monarch butterflies face numerous threats throughout their life cycle – both natural and human-induced—it is widely acknowledged that habitat loss is the single most devastating blow to the species in North America. Specifically, monarch butterflies depend upon milkweed (Asclepia spp.), which is generally in decline across the country, for their caterpillars to hatch and mature into adults. Additionally, overwintering sites in Mexico are under threat from logging and migratory routes are threatened due to extreme weather events and pesticide use across the US. Help is spread awareness!
Watch the magic unfold in this episode of Ranger Tim's Nature Show on YouTube.