Spokane Audubon Meeting Monarch butterfly migration tracked with technolog

Spokane Audubon Society (SAS) February 11, 6 – 7:30 p.m., meeting at Shadle Park Library, 2111 W. Wellesley Ave. in northwest Spokane, will feature a presentation on monarch butterflies. Meeting room door opens at 5:45 for a little social time before the program begins. If you can’t attend in person, it can be enjoyed from home on-line via Zoom link available here.

Monarch butterfly migration tracked with new technology

Presented by Patrick Adair, WingsRising, Inc

Washington State University (WSU) research on Monarch butterfly migration corridors through Idaho is using new tracking technology with citizen science field support from WingsRising, Inc., a local non-profit organization led by Patrick Adair.

Adair will explain how volunteers are helping track rare Monarch butterflies equipped with a tiny telemetry transmitter that weighs just 60 milligrams called “Blu+Morpho.” It uses solar energy and Bluetooth technology rather than a battery, and location transmissions are picked up in real time through a cell phone application.

Leading the WSU research is entomologist Dr. David James who has been working for over a decade to determine the migratory corridors used by monarchs during their fall migration from Idaho to California, the Southwest, or Mexico. The new light-weight technology and help from volunteers may finally provide some answers.

WingsRising, Inc. also invests in restoration work for Monarchs, with projects to plant milkweed and other butterfly-sustaining plants in powerline corridors and commercial properties, as well as public conservation areas.
Posted in 2026-02
Tagged Education, No Registration