Photograph courtesy of Henry T. McLin.

Restoring and Maintaining Monarch and Pollinator Habitat

Ray MoranzGrazing Lands Pollinator Ecologist

Ray MoranzNRCS Partner Biologist

Protecting the Life that Sustains Us

The Xerces Society is a nonprofit organization that protects wildlife through the conservation of invertebrates and their habitat.

Xerces Blue (Glaucopsyche xerces)

Photo:Ed Ross

Research, on-the ground Conservation, education,

& advocacy to protect invertebrates and habitat

Major Programs:

• Aquatic invertebrates

• Pesticides

• Citizen science

• Endangered species

• Pollinator conservation

Photos: Anne Averill, H. Ballard, Ed Ross

Introduction to the Xerces Society

Essential elements of habitat

Photograph courtesy of Samuel.

Trees for adults to roost in

Photograph courtesy of Pablo Leautaud

Asclepias syriaca

(common milkweed)

Photos: Ray Moranz

Asclepias tuberosa

(butterfly milkweed)

Asclepias incarnata

(swamp milkweed)

Common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca):

• Most abundant milkweed in Midwest and Northeast

• Rhizomatous

Photos: Ray Moranz; Brianna Borders

Butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa): • Most widespread milkweed in eastern U.S.

• Very long-lived perennial with very large taproot

Photos: Ray Moranz

Butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa):

Photos: Ray Moranz

Photo by Ray Moranz

Coral Hairstreak on Butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa)

Photo by Ray Moranz

Swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata):

• Loves wet areas

• Females loves to lay eggs on it and larvae really love it

(Tori Pocius et al, Iowa State U.)

Photos: Ray Moranz

Photos: Ray Moranz

Total of 12 Asclepiasspecies native to West

Virginia!

Green comet milkweed (Asclepias viridiflora)

Photo: Ray Moranz

Green comet milkweed (Asclepias viridiflora)

Map: USDA PLANTS

Whorled milkweed (Asclepias verticillata)

Whorled milkweed (Asclepias verticillata)

Konza Prairie, KS

Longleaf milkweed (Asclepias longifolia)

Some call this species Asclepias hirtella (green milkweed)

Photo: Ray Moranz

Milkweeds VINES for caterpillars to feed on

Drawing: Britton and Brown 1913 ( Public Domain)

• Cynanchum

• Matelea

• (like Asclepias, these genera are in Family Apocynaceae)

Milkweeds VINES for caterpillars to feed on

Photo: Robert Mohlenbrock USDA NRCS

Cynanchum laeve (honeyvine)

Cynanchum laeve (honeyvine)

Map: USDA PLANTS

Matelea obliqua (climbing milkvine)

Photo: Mason Brock (Public domain)

Matelea obliqua (climbing milkvine)

Map: BONAP

Three exotic Cynanchum species approach….

• Cynanchum louisiae ( Louise’s swallow-wort )

• Cynanchum rossicum (European swallow-wort)

• Cynanchum vincetoxicum ( White swallow-wort )

C. rossicumpartial map of distribution

Map: BONAP

Cynanchum rossicum (European swallow-wort)

Photo: Epibase CC by S.A 3.0

MJV has excellent fact sheet on exotic Cynanchum

• https://monarchjointventure.org/images/uploads/documents/Swallow-wort_flyer.pdf

Source: Monarch Joint Venture

Adults need nectar sources.

• West Virginia has hundreds of plant species that produce nectar.

• Do monarchs like them all?

• Do monarchs exhibit preferences for nectar sources?

Photos: Ray Moranz

Xerces Society’s Monarch Nectar Plant Database

WEST VIRGINIA OBSERVATIONS?

Our database has no records from West Virginia

PLEASE HELP US add data to Xerces Society’s database

1) Write a note and give to me after my talk, or

2) “Xerces Monarch Nectar Plant”; click on “online survey”

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfC85E-btqsGSrt16TSAogICzLV2PvOlrID-un-m0jWJpJQkA/viewform?c=0&w=1

Or3) Email me for the website: (ray.moranz@xerces.org)

NRCS monarch plant guide for Greater Appalachians

34

NRCS monarch plant guide: species account

NRCS monarch plant guide for Greater Appalachians

• Google search for: “NRCS Monarchs”

Dakota mock vervain(Glandulariabipinnatifida)

Q.: What woody plants do monarchs like?

Q.: What are the nectar sources in SPRING???

Q.: What are the Spring Nectar Sources???

• “monarchs frequently visit American plum trees (Prunus americana) as well as wild lupine (Lupinusperennis) and common gaillardia (Gaillardia aristata) when they arrive in West Virginia in the spring”

– Master Naturalists of West Virginia

• http://mnofwv.org/monarch_summit/milkweeds_and_nectar_resources

Photograph courtesy of Kellly Gill.

Planting Habitat

Kelly Gill, pollinator conservation specialistNortheast and Mid-Atlantic

Nancy Lee Adamson, Senior Pollinator Conservation Specialist, Southeastern Region

Meadow restoration

Photograph courtesy of Kellly Gill.

• Planted wildflower mix in meadow but also at edge of forest

• Helianthus angustifolius

• Eutrochium purpureum

Woodland Habitat, Mount Cuba, Delaware

• Seeded a few years ago

• Lots of black-eyed susan, goldenrod, sneezeweed, asters, ironweed

Photograph courtesy of Kellly Gill.

Underneath tree crop (PA)

• Agroforestry: swamp oak, scarlet oak, red oak, black gum, sycamore, maple, tulip poplar

• Groundcover: red clover/white clover mix

• Other forbs you could use: black eyed susan, coreopsis, phacelia

Photograph courtesy of Kellly Gill.

Amidst Orchards

Photograph courtesy of Kellly Gill.

• Adams Co. Pennsylvania.

• Installed wildflower mixes several years ago using NRCS Practice 327 (Conservation Cover)

Superfund sites!!

• Lehigh Co., PA

• Looked like the Moon a few years ago

Photograph courtesy of Kellly Gill.

Golf courses

• Battleground Country Club, NJ

• Year 2

Photograph courtesy of Kelly Gill.

• “first year it sleeps, second year it creeps, third year it leaps.”

• patience is key!!!

138 pages of wisdom

Photograph courtesy of James Towill CC by S.A. 2.0.

Managing Habitat with Disturbance

Photograph courtesy of James Towill CC by S.A. 2.0.

Erin Hartman’s discovery

• Erin monitors monarch eggs and larvae on common milkweed near PA/WV border

Found that monarchs LOVE to lay eggs on common milkweeds mowed a few weeks earlier

border

Alcock et al. 2016

• Northern Virginia (Fauquier County)

• Some portions of meadow hayed Aug 8 to Aug 16

• In September, more monarch eggs and young larvae on recently mowed milkweeds than on unmowed milkweeds

• Don’t know if additional eggs in Sept. compensates for eggs/larvae/pupae lost in August

“The wildflowers are already there. We just need to stop mowing them down.” – Jeff Caster, Florida DOT

Photo: Idaho Transportation Department

Mowing BMPs:

Frequency: once per year, perhaps twice

Timing: Avoid peak monarch breeding

Height: Mow at height of 10” or more to allow vegetation to recover quicker

Sources: Forman et al. 2003; Johst et al. 2006; Noordik et al 2009; Stark et al. 2012; Skorka et al. 2013 ; Warner 1992; Norcini 2014; Harrison 2014

Photo: Ray Moranz

High Quality Monarch Habitat in Kansas

• In central U.S., lack of fire has allowed cedar invasion.

• Cedars eventually convert prairie to cedar forest,

with very few forbs.

Pale purple coneflower (Echinacea pallida)

RECENTLY BURNED, but NOT grazed

What happens to pollinator plants when you burn?

When you burn, many forb species bloom more profusely

Prescribed fire helps maintain wildflower diversity at Appalachicola National Forest, FL

If you are nervous about doing a large fire…..…..start with small fires to get the hang of it

West Virginians have an amazing opportunity

Mountaineers for Monarchs?

Statewide Effort to Save Monarchs and Pollinators

Ray MoranzGrazing Lands Pollinator Ecologist

Katie HawkDirector of Communications and External Affairs

OKLAHOMA MONARCH AND POLLINATOR COLLABORATIVE

• 4-H/Master Gardeners

• 7 Tribe Initiative

• Ag Innovations

• Blue Doors

• Choctaw Nation

• Cimarron Sierra Club

• Intertribal Land Trust

• Kerr Center

• Kirkpatrick Foundation

• Landowners

• McClain County

Conservation District

• Monarch Watch

• National Wildlife

Federation

• Natural Resources

Conservation Service

• Oaks and Prairies Joint

Venture

• OK Assoc. of

Conservation Districts

• OK Dept. of Tourism

• OK Dept. of

Transportation

• OK Dept. of Wildlife

Conservation

MEMBERS • OK Invasive Plant

Council

• OK Native Plant Society

• OK Natural Heritage

Inventory

• OK State University

• OKC Urban AG Coalition

• OKC Parks & Recreation

• OK Cattlemen’s Assoc.

• OKC Zoo

• OK Farm Bureau

• Oxley Nature Center

• Peach Creek Ranch

• Pheasants Forever

• Prairie Wind Nursery

• Sam Noble Foundation

• Shawnee Tribe

• Sierra Club

• The Nature

Conservancy

• Tishomingo National

Wildlife Refuge

• Tulsa Urban Wilderness

Coalition

• Tulsa Zoo

• U.S. Fish & Wildlife

Service

• U.S. Golf Association

• Western Farmers

Electric Coop

• Wild Things Nursery

• Xerces Society

OKLAHOMA MONARCH AND POLLINATOR COLLABORATIVE

STEERING COMMITTEE• Patrick Bell, OK Native Plant Society• Matt Fullerton, OK Dept of Wildlife Cons.• Ray Moranz, Xerces & NRCS• Jay Pruett & Katie Hawk, The Nature Conservancy• David Redhage, Kerr Center for Sustainable Ag. • Rebecca Snyder, OK City Zoo• Richard Kotarsky, Tulsa Zoo• Julianne Whitaker, OK Dept of Transportation • Kristen Baum, OSU• Katie Boyer, USFWS• Alicia Nevaquaya, Intertribal Land Trust• Jane Breckinridge, Euchee Butterfly Farm• Dustin Lamoreaux, Pheasants/Quail Forever• Lisa Knauf-Owen, OK Cons. Districtts• Marla Peek, OK Farm Bureau• Mary Waller, OMPC Director (NEW!)

WORK GROUPS

OKLAHOMA MONARCH AND POLLINATOR COLLABORATIVE

OUTREACH / URBAN LANDS• Lead – Katie Hawk, TNC

GRASSLANDS / AGRICULTURE• Lead – Jay Pruett, TNC

RIGHTS OF WAY• Lead – Julianne Whitaker, OK Dept of Transportation

MONITORING & DATA MANAGEMENT• Lead – Matt Fullerton, OK Dept of Wildlife Cons.

SEED & PLANT PRODUCTION• Lead – Ray Moranz, Xerces & NRCS

To educate, engage, and support

Oklahomans in the protection and

enhancement of suitable habitat

and nectar sources for monarchs

and pollinators throughout

Oklahoma.

OKLAHOMA MONARCH AND POLLINATOR

COLLABORATIVE

MISSION

Collaboratively develop

Statewide

Monarch Conservation Plan.

OKLAHOMA MONARCH AND POLLINATOR

COLLABORATIVE

GOAL 1

STEERING COMMITTEE• Patrick Bell, OK Native Plant Society• Matt Fullerton, OK Dept of Wildlife Cons.• Ray Moranz, Xerces & NRCS• Jay Pruett & Katie Hawk, The Nature Conservancy• David Redhage, Kerr Center for Sustainable Ag. • Rebecca Snyder, OK City Zoo• Richard Kotarsky, Tulsa Zoo• Julianne Whitaker, OK Dept of Transportation • Kristen Baum, OSU• Katie Boyer, USFWS• Alicia Nevaquaya, Intertribal Land Trust• Jane Breckinridge, Euchee Butterfly Farm• Dustin Lamoreaux, Pheasants/Quail Forever• Lisa Knauf-Owen, OK Cons. Districtts• Marla Peek, OK Farm Bureau• Mary Waller, OMPC Director (NEW!)

WORK GROUPS

OKLAHOMA MONARCH AND POLLINATOR COLLABORATIVE

OUTREACH / URBAN LANDS• Lead – Katie Hawk, TNC

GRASSLANDS / AGRICULTURE• Lead – Jay Pruett, TNC

RIGHTS OF WAY• Lead – Julianne Whitaker, OK Dept of Transportation

MONITORING & DATA MANAGEMENT• Lead – Matt Fullerton, OK Dept of Wildlife Cons.

SEED & PLANT PRODUCTION• Lead – Ray Moranz, Xerces & NRCS

Oklahoma Monarch and Pollinator Collaborative

• www.okiesformonarchs.org

© 2017 The Xerces Society, Inc. All rights reserved.

Acknowledgements

• Thanks to the Sponsors of this Summit

• Special thanks to:

• Sarah Owen for inviting me

• Sarah and Sheldon Owen for taking care

of logistis in getting me here

© 2017 The Xerces Society, Inc. All rights reserved.

Acknowledgements

Thank you to these Xerces Society supporters:

Annie's

Bently Foundation

Bill Healy Foundation

Cascadian Farm

Ceres Trust

Cheerios

Cinco

CS Fund

The Dudley Foundation

Endangered Species Chocolate

Gaia Fund

General Mills

Häagen-Dazs

Ittleson Foundation

J.Crew

Justin's

Madhava Natural Sweeteners

Metabolic Studio

Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund

Nature Valley

ninety-nine girlfriends

Sarah K. de Coizart Article TENTH Perpetual Charitable Trust

The Monarch Joint Venture

Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program

Turner Foundation

U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service

The White Pine Fund

Whole Systems Foundation

Xerces Society Members

ray.moranz@xerces.org

ray.moranz@ftw.usda.gov