Washington Among Several Western States Collaborating on Monarch Butterfly Conservation Plan

According to WDFW, monarch butterflies are summer residents and breeders in eastern Washington, primarily found near riparian areas and roadsides where native showy milkweed grows. They migrate north to Washington in late spring and south to California in September, with hundreds of sightings reported annually. The Western Monarch Butterfly Conservation Plan aims to address threats and opportunities facing monarchs and other pollinators, which was enacted in 2019.

WAFWA officials said that the 2025 update refined habitat and population targets, incorporated emerging science, and identified voluntary conservation actions aimed at stabilizing and recovering the western monarch population. 

“The latest update to the Western Monarch Butterfly Conservation Plan details actions that protect monarchs in eastern Washington, including restoring and protecting habitat like showy milkweed while reducing habitat loss, pesticide exposure, and invasive species,” said Julie Combs, WDFW’s monarch species lead. 

Combs stated that western monarch butterfly population numbers are “alarmingly low” compared to historic counts, ranging from hundreds of thousands to over one million butterflies. The Western Monarch Count, an annual community science event led by the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, has recently documented some of the lowest western monarch butterfly overwintering populations – as low as 1,900 individuals – since the program began in 1997. 

Those low overwintering numbers in other states like California directly translate into historically low migratory and breeding butterflies in Washington, as few as 25-100 butterflies annually in the last few years, according to Combs.  

“In light of these startlingly low numbers, we wanted to ensure that, with this plan, we are providing Washington land managers, landowners, conservation practitioners, and any others, the right tools to help conserve monarch butterfly populations as best as they can,” said Combs.   

The WAFWA Western Monarch & Native Insect Pollinator Working Group (WMNIP) updates the Western Monarch Butterfly Conservation Plan every five years. The WMNIP is chaired by WDFW Conservation Assessment Section Manager Taylor Cotten, who facilitated the 2025 updates to the plan. 

“This plan update represents the best available science and details implementable actions that can be applied in Washington state and across the western monarch range,” said Cotten. 

“Conserving monarchs is going to take all of us,” said Bill Van Pelt, WAFWA ecosystem coordinator. “This strategic plan identifies conservation actions at multiple levels, from a single person up to a city or corporation. Together, we will be able to keep these orange jewels flying across Washington and throughout their range.”  

For more information, visit wafwa.org.