A Portland yard turns into a monarch sanctuary
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If you plant milkweed they will (probably) come. Photos: Courtesy of Martha Coleman
Martha Coleman's home in Montavilla has turned into an unlikely butterfly refuge over the last few months after she caught sight of an increasingly rare monarch in her yard.
Why it matters: Monarchs — one of the most iconic and recognizable butterflies in the world — have seen precipitous declines in recent decades.
Coleman and her partner were leaving home June 24 when they noticed a flash of orange among the milkweed in her yard.
- She snapped a photo, posted it on Facebook and was quickly inundated with comments and messages from experts telling her this was the first documented sighting of a monarch in Portland this year.
Zoom in: One particular comment, which said the butterfly appeared to be laying eggs, caught Coleman's attention.
- "We searched every day and ultimately found 51 eggs," she told Axios. "They're like little jewels, very symmetrical and beautiful."
- Coleman set up enclosures and nursed the eggs through their caterpillar stage into their chrysalises, and she watched as 25 full-fledged monarchs emerged from their cocoons.
Context: The monarch population has declined by more than 80% since the 1990s, mainly due to loss of milkweed habitat, pesticides and climate change.
- Coleman transformed her yard from a mess of weeds, blackberry and ivy into an oasis of native plants, including milkweed, in hopes of attracting pollinators like the monarch.
- "You feel like you're not allowed to hope for it, and then it happens," she said. "It's this ultimate gift of an experience."
Just 5% of monarch eggs will typically survive in the wild, according to David James, a professor of entomology at Washington State University.
- "The monarch needs every bit of help we can give it, so the power of people like Martha in helping a small group of caterpillars successfully achieve adulthood is considerable," he told Axios.
- "Even more valuable is the impact that efforts like those of Martha have on other people in raising awareness of the problems facing monarchs and how we can help them."
What's next: Coleman has released many of the butterflies she's helped raise, describing her role as a "steward," with the rest of the monarchs set for release as soon as they're ready.
The bottom line: James said he hopes Coleman's experience is one others learn from.
- "Milkweed is an excellent resource for all pollinators, not just monarchs, and with milkweed you always have a chance in attracting monarchs," he said.
Editor's note: This story has been corrected to reflect that Coleman and her partner spotted a monarch butterfly in the yard on June (not July) 24.