Scientists, Volunteers Plan Monarch Tagging Effort In Northern Wisconsin

People in northern Wisconsin will be tagging monarch butterflies over the next two weekends as part of a citizen science monitoring effort to track the insects’ movements.

Around 90 percent of the monarch population has disappeared over more than a decade. According to Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest spokeswoman Hilary Markin, scientists have been trying to determine what factors have played a role in their decline. As part of that effort, Markin said they’re looking to tag 50 monarch butterflies at the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center in Ashland.

“Right now, the monarchs are headed south, and we’re hoping to tag them so we can help track their migration all the way to the southern United States and into Mexico,” she said.

Markin said they’re seeking volunteers to net the monarchs and place tiny tracking stickers on their wings.

“They’re probably half the size of a dime,” she said.

Estimates for monarch numbers were at record lows last year, but there’s been an uptick this year.