How You Can Help Save Monarch Butterflies—Right in Your Own Backyard

Make every day Earth Day by supporting the existence of monarch butterflies with this simple addition to your lawn or garden.

Pesticides and Loss of Habitat are Costing Monarch Butterfly Lives

The monarch butterfly population has been in decline for more than two decades. Both the Eastern Monarch and Western Monarch have seen devastating drops in numbers over the years. Loss of habitat, the growing use of pesticides, and increases in severe weather have resulted in the decline.

Monarch Butterflies Are Rapidly Declining

In California, where the Western Monarch Butterflies overwinter, and conservationists have been tracking the species' population since 1997, there were only 9,119 Western Monarchs counted. This marks the second lowest population ever recorded in nearly 30 years, according to the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

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New Federal Proposal Aims to Protect Monarchs

The population of monarch butterflies has declined so drastically that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service published a proposed rule (Docket number: FWS–R3–ES–2024–0137) that would include the monarch butterfly as a threatened species covered under protective regulations, and to designate more than 4,000 acres of land dedicated to serving as monarch butterfly habitat.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposes to list the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. The monarch butterfly occurs in all States except Alaska. The proposed rule includes prohibitions and exceptions to the prohibitions that are necessary and advisable for the conservation of the monarch butterfly. The Service proposes to designate 4,395 acres as critical habitat for the monarch butterfly.

That proposed rule was released on December 12, 2024, and offered the public a 90-day window for comments. The original comment period ended on March 12, 2025. However, the public comment period has been reopened for an additional 60 days, concluding on May 19, 2025.

Why Monarch Survival Matters

The monarch butterfly is a species that plays a critical role in our ecosystem. They work alongside bees and other pollinators, contributing to the reproduction of both flowering and edible plants.

Leave a Public Comment to Support Monarch Protection

If you would like to share your concerns for the conservation of monarch butterflies, you can leave your public comment with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service before May 19, 2025, but there are also steps you can take at home to help with monarch butterfly conservation.

READ MORE: That Fluff in the Air in Fall is Milkweed Floss

How You Can Help Monarchs at Home

To help the monarch butterflies in your yard, plant native milkweed. Monarch butterflies lay their eggs in milkweed plants, and new monarch butterfly caterpillars feed exclusively on milkweed plants. As CBS's 60 Minutes points out, genetically modified crops have essentially wiped agricultural lands across the nation of milkweed.