Saving the Monarchs - Become a Citizen Scientist 🦋

By Mairs Ryan, our SCCG Monarch Expert

Scientists cannot chase around every garden and field to collect their stats on monarchs. Instead, they rely on citizen scientists to record evidence of Monarch sightings. The details can then be used to compile scientific data. That data can include information on the sites of overwintering monarchs, the coordinates of milkweed locations, or the types of ecosystems in which the monarchs are laying their eggs.

Any nature lover can become a citizen scientist and there are several free apps that can be of assistance along the way and make it easy to share what you see. Below are four of my favorite apps:

• Western Monarch Milkweed Mapper allows the user to upload photos of monarchs as well as milkweed. Plus it provides a milkweed key for identification for submission.

• An alternative route to the same goal is to use the app, inaturalist, and select Western Monarch Mapper Project.

• Monarch SOS is an app is for those citizen scientists who want to participate in the Xerces annual count of overwintering sites. Like the WMMM app it includes photos of milkweed species for users to correctly identify monarchs’ host plants.

• The app, Journey North, records evidence when tracking the monarch migration. Submission of such monarch sightings allows scientists to map patterns of migration over a continuum of time.

Any nature lover can make the move to citizen scientist. Give it a try. The scientists need your help!