A series of workshops will be launched this week that are designed to teach Iowans how to extend the habitat for monarch butterflies and other pollinators.

Liz Ripley, an outreach specialist at the Iowa Learning Farms on the campus of Iowa State University, says the four workshops will be held in four different areas of the state during February and March — and they’re all free.

“So it’s open to anyone who would like to attend. We’d like to see a good mix of farmers, landowners and urban residents,” Ripley says. “When it comes to creating more habitat, we need everybody at the table. Obviously, the largest portion of our land here in Iowa and across the Corn Belt is in agricultural production, so definitely trying to reach a lot of farmers and landowners.”

Like farmers, Ripley says pollinators help ensure the world eats. Studies find about 75% of the world’s flowering plants and about 35% of the world’s food crops depend on pollinators. That’s why the workshops are important, she says, as all Iowans can play a role.

“It’s an opportunity to learn a little bit more specifically what the monarchs as an indicator-pollinator species need and desire for their habitat and survival,” she says, “but also the role they play when it comes to our ability to grow things, not only here in Iowa, but across the Midwest and Corn Belt.”

Iowa is in the middle of the annual monarch commute lane as the orange-and-black insects made the incredibly long journey. Experts can establish their population counts by the number of acres occupied when they overwinter in Mexico, and the numbers have fallen drastically in the past 20 years.

“They can estimate the number of monarchs based on how much area that they cover each winter, and that does ebb and flow depending on different survival rates from the year prior,” Ripley says. “We have seen that continued steady decline of these monarchs, and a lot of that has been driven by habitat loss along their migratory journey north and south each year.”

She says the workshops will provide Iowans with an opportunity to learn more about monarchs and how to integrate additional pollinator habitat into the state’s landscape.

“These workshops are going to be held February 6th in Ames, February 11th at Storm Lake, March 11th in Fairfield, and March 18th in Coralville,” she says, “and if you’re interested in joining us, we just ask folks to RSVP to help us make sure that we have enough food on hand for the complimentary meal that’s included with each of these workshops.”

To RSVP, contact Ripley at 515-294-2473 or [email protected].

 

Share this:
Radio Iowa