Keep your eyes out for Monarch Butterflies. Two of Vintage's students, Emma A. and Nadia W. assisted by Nadia's mother, Ms. Silvia, are Citizen Scientist with the Project Monarch Alert at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo that helps nurture future scientists at Vintage Magnet. Read more below to learn how these students are helping to provide data for the University of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
Have you seen Monarch Butterflies 80103, 80105, and 80106?
If you see a Monarch Butterfly take a moment to observe. Look at its flight. And see if under the wing there is a small yellow decal with numbers. If you see girls 80103, 80105 or boy 80106, please let us know! And take a picture!
Oh, the places they go …..
Where do our Monarch butterflies go? Do the wintering ones in Los Angeles still live longer than the other generations?
To answer these questions and to help understand the Western Monarch, Ms. Silvia, a scientist, joined the Citizen Scientist team at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Monarch Alert and earned the privilege to tag Monarch butterflies. She is now mentoring future scientists at Vintage as they become Monarch experts and develop their scientific curiosity in the process.
What is Citizen Science:
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife requires those wishing to tag Monarch butterflies to become permitted.
Ms. Silvia went through the process to get a sub-permit and help the kids at Vintage tag their butterflies. To get our 25 tags Silvia had to complete a training about the Western Monarch, Danaus plexippus and take a test. She also had to learn about the Roles and Responsibilities of working with the Monarch. We registered our garden with Monarch Alert because we have milkweed for Monarch caterpillars and have flowers for the butterflies.
For each Monarch we tag, we have to record when the number of the tag, when it eclosed (emerge as an adult), the gender, measure wing size and make notes about appearance. Once we have more practice working with Monarchs we can learn to test them for parasite OE (Ophryocystis elektroscirrha), and even look for the parasite under the microscope. We have to send all the data we accumulate to Monarch Alert, which is headed by Biology Professor Francis Villablanca at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
The tag is a sticker the size of a pencil eraser. It has a phone number to call and a tag number. The place to put it is on the underside of the hind wing of the Monarch in the space that looks like a mitten. It needs to be put 2-3 hours after the Monarch ecloses. It is very light and it doesn’t bother the butterfly.
Report a Monarch Sightings
We place tags on the underside of monarch wings. These tags allow us to individually identify butterflies that are later re-sighted. Re-sighting information provides data on movement between overwintering sites, persistence at individual sites, population estimates per site, and migration patterns in spring.
If you locate a tagged monarch, please call the number on the tag and report the details about your sighting to Monarch Alert. Please provide the location, date, and tag number:”
Thank you, Ms. Silvia, with your help with this article.
Have you seen Monarch Butterflies 80103, 80105, and 80106?
If you see a Monarch Butterfly take a moment to observe. Look at its flight. And see if under the wing there is a small yellow decal with numbers. If you see girls 80103, 80105 or boy 80106, please let us know! And take a picture!
Oh, the places they go …..
Where do our Monarch butterflies go? Do the wintering ones in Los Angeles still live longer than the other generations?
To answer these questions and to help understand the Western Monarch, Ms. Silvia, a scientist, joined the Citizen Scientist team at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Monarch Alert and earned the privilege to tag Monarch butterflies. She is now mentoring future scientists at Vintage as they become Monarch experts and develop their scientific curiosity in the process.
What is Citizen Science:
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife requires those wishing to tag Monarch butterflies to become permitted.
Ms. Silvia went through the process to get a sub-permit and help the kids at Vintage tag their butterflies. To get our 25 tags Silvia had to complete a training about the Western Monarch, Danaus plexippus and take a test. She also had to learn about the Roles and Responsibilities of working with the Monarch. We registered our garden with Monarch Alert because we have milkweed for Monarch caterpillars and have flowers for the butterflies.
For each Monarch we tag, we have to record when the number of the tag, when it eclosed (emerge as an adult), the gender, measure wing size and make notes about appearance. Once we have more practice working with Monarchs we can learn to test them for parasite OE (Ophryocystis elektroscirrha), and even look for the parasite under the microscope. We have to send all the data we accumulate to Monarch Alert, which is headed by Biology Professor Francis Villablanca at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
The tag is a sticker the size of a pencil eraser. It has a phone number to call and a tag number. The place to put it is on the underside of the hind wing of the Monarch in the space that looks like a mitten. It needs to be put 2-3 hours after the Monarch ecloses. It is very light and it doesn’t bother the butterfly.
Report a Monarch Sightings
We place tags on the underside of monarch wings. These tags allow us to individually identify butterflies that are later re-sighted. Re-sighting information provides data on movement between overwintering sites, persistence at individual sites, population estimates per site, and migration patterns in spring.
If you locate a tagged monarch, please call the number on the tag and report the details about your sighting to Monarch Alert. Please provide the location, date, and tag number:”
Thank you, Ms. Silvia, with your help with this article.
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