The number of monarch butterflies that migrated from the north to central Mexico to hibernate for winter fell by 26 percent as four times as many trees in the region were lost to illegal logging and drought, according to a report from the Mexican government and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
The butterflies’ population covered about 2.1 hectares (5.2 acres) of hibernation forests in 2020, compared to 2.8 hectares the previous year and about one third of the 6.05 hectares in 2018. The species cluster densely in pine and fir trees and are counted by area rather than individually, according to the WWF.
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The report says climate change had a “considerable impact” on the species’ migration pattern and the reduction of milkweed in the U.S. and Canada in recent years, which the insects depend on, caused a decline in their numbers.
“During the spring and summer of 2020, climatic variations in the southern United States were not favorable for milkweed blossoms and the development of eggs and larvae. This limited the reproduction of the Monarch population, with an impact on the migrant generation, reducing the population of this insect throughout North America and leading to a smaller population occupying the Mexican forests during its hibernation,” the report said.
The director general of WWF-Mexico, Jorge Rickards, noted that while the orange and black butterflies are not in danger of extinction, the species migratory process is at risk and governments and researchers need to take action to ensure the survival of the butterfly going forward.
Millions of monarch butterflies make the 2,000-mile journey across North America to Mexico each year. Mexico’s western state of Michoacan is home to the country’s largest monarch butterfly reserve.
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