The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) reported that the number of Monarch butterflies wintering in México this season was up 69 percent over that seen in the 2013-2014 season.
Although the increase was good news, the number of Monarch butterflies was the second lowest since 1993, the first year in which the number of wintering butterflies was counted.
The WWF said that based on surveys and research the Monarch butterfly continues to be threatened by the decline of milkweed available due to increased herbicide use, deforestation and the illegal logging of its Mexican overwintering sites and “extreme weather conditions” in North America that affect its migration pattern.
In a press conference in Toluca, México, last month, President Enrique Peña Nieto said he “agreed to work on the preservation” with Prime Minister Stephen Harper and President Barack Obama to protect what he called one of North America’s “landmark species.”
(from Canadian Geographic)
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