WHY MONARCH MADNESS?

Monarchs are amazing! They also have declining populations and are listed as a ‘species at risk’. They need your help! We want to know how many Monarchs live in Waterloo and where their host plants are so that we can plan where to place our Monarch Way-Stations next year. Your School could be one!

For helping us out, you can earn a badge for each Monarch life stage observed. Your participation also will earn your school points on our Monarch Leaderboard. The school with the most participants will be guaranteed a Monarch Way-Station installed at their site by WRDSB high school horticulture students next spring.

 

WHAT TO DO:

  1. Observe Monarchs and their host plant, Milkweed, anywhere in Waterloo Region. You may make as many observations as you wish during the count period starting at 8AM on June 15th, and finishing 4PM on September 25th.  This project will run all summer long!
  2. You will earn a badge for each life stage you observe, so find some Milkweed and return several times through the summer to find Monarch Eggs, Caterpillars, Chrysalises and eventually Adults! 
  3. Note the date and location for your observations.  You can describe the location to the nearest road intersection, share GPS coordinates, or decide to keep your location private.   
  4. Describe the type of Milkweed (Common or Swamp), how many plants are in the patch, and on how many plants you searched for Monarchs.
  5. If you found eggs, larva, pupa or adults, please note how many of each. 
  6. Enter your observations ONLINE or complete the attached paper form and share it with us. Submit a new checklist for:
    1. Each new day
    2. Each new location
  7. When submitting your observations, you will be submitting using a google form and you will have to sign using an email address. We will send your badges to this email address, so please enter it carefully.
  8. Please share with us your experience.  Write a short description of what you did in the comments section.  Did you see something you weren’t expecting?  Were you surprised by anything?
  9. When you are done, click the Submit button! You should see a confirmation page that will give you the option of changing your submission if you think you made an error.  You should also get an email summary of your observations.
  10. Please share a photo of your experience (especially interesting Monarch or Milkweed pictures) by email or social media. 
  11. If you observe Monarchs again during the count period, submit another form!

Thank you!  Sincerely, the Outdoor and Environmental Education Team!