Maria De Jesus Berry
- Sep 22, 2020
- 3 min read

Printable Monarch Butterfly Wall Art Set of 3 & Monarch Butterfly Facts and Conservation

I'm a HUGE LOVER of Monarch Butterflies. The monarch butterfly is one of the most recognizable and well studied butterflies on the planet. Its orange wings are laced with black lines and bordered with white dots. Famous for their seasonal migration, millions of monarchs migrate from the United States and Canada south to California and Mexico for the winter.

I wanted to bring a spotlight to the conservation efforts in saving and preserving Monarch Butterflies. <3 Center for Biological Diversity works hard to save monarchs (and all other native pollinators) from pesticides like glyphosate and dicamba through their Environmental Health program. ( For my FREE Printable Monarch Butterfly Wall Art Set of 3, Scroll Down)

Monarch Facts

Monarch butterflies are native to North and South America, but they’ve spread to other warm places where milkweed grows. No longer found in South America, monarchs in North America are divided into two main groups: The western monarchs, which breed west of the Rocky Mountains and overwinter in southern California; and the eastern monarchs, which breed in the Great Plains and Canada, and overwinter in Central Mexico. There are also populations in Hawaii; Portugal and Spain; and Australia, New Zealand, and elsewhere in Oceania.

Conservation groups have petitioned the U.S. government to add the monarch butterfly to the Endangered Species Act list. While a decision has not yet been made, it’s clear the species is in decline, facing a number of threats.

Western monarchs have declined by more than 99 percent since the 1980s. Eastern monarchs have declined by an estimated 80 percent.

The disappearance of milkweed is a major reason for their population decline. Milkweed, which is the only place monarchs will lay their eggs and the only food caterpillars will eat, used to grow in and around agricultural crops. The systematic removal of milkweed from fields in recent years, as well as increased use of herbicides and mowing alongside roads and ditches, has significantly reduced the amount of milkweed available.

Climate change is also a concern for a number of reasons. Monarchs are very sensitive to temperature and weather changes, so climate change may affect biological processes, such as knowing when to reproduce and to migrate. It’s also creating more extreme weather events, which negatively affects their overwintering habitats, the availability of milkweed in their breeding habitats, and their survival directly—too hot or too cold, and monarchs will die.

As an iconic and loved species, monarchs have received a lot of attention from conservationists. Projects exist across North America. Public awareness campaigns encourage people to plant milkweed in their yards and cities—just look up the type that’s right for your region. There are also a number of citizen scientist opportunities, where regular people can help scientists collect data, which is critical for developing conservation policies to protect monarchs.

Monarch sanctuaries protect the butterflies’ winter habitats and attract tourists, who help provide funding to support their efforts. Some, however, are at risk from human development and conflict. There are also many larger-scale efforts to protect habitat, better manage land for pollinators, replenish milkweed, raise awareness, and gather new scientific evidence to better understand monarchs.

COMMON NAME: Monarch butterflies

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Danaus plexippus

TYPE: Invertebrates

DIET: Herbivore

GROUP NAME: Flutter

AVERAGE LIFE SPAN: Six to eight months

SIZE: Wingspan, 3.7 to 4.1 inches

WEIGHT: 0.0095 to 0.026 ounces

I created this set of 3 Printable Monarch Butterfly Wall Art for Butterfly Lovers everywhere. There is no text, just colors and the beautiful Monarch Butterfly in all it's beauty. These are perfect for framing together. <3 ENJOY <3