YES Charter Academy Supports Monarch Butterflies With New Waystation By Julia Campbell

On April 26th, Yuba Environmental Science (YES) Charter Academy committed to the support of the migrating Monarch butterfly populations for generations to come. Collaborating with several organizations and agencies, such as the Yuba County Resource Conservation District (RCD) and Yuba Watershed Protection & Fire Safe Council, they gathered over 60 volunteers from the community to establish the Yuba Foothills Monarch Waystation. YES farmer Juan Jose Domingo and DJ Baker, Director of RCD, mapped out the planting beds and trails, with the help of Yuba Watershed Protection & Fire Safe Council Director Allison Thompson’s expert eye the day of the planting event. Earning a certificate of recognition from Kristen Baum, Director of MonarchWatch.org, the Yuba Foothills Monarch Waystation is an official habitat for migrating monarchs. The inspiration for this mode of conservation blossomed from the current curriculum at YES; Connie Murtaugh, a first-grade teacher at YES, has her class studying pollinators and their habitats. Her students had the goal of planting 500 milkweed plants or more and enlisted the help of their community members to achieve and exceed this goal. Students joined volunteers from the community and planted more than 500 plants in the beds along trails, providing vital resources to monarchs needed for their reproduction and migration. Monarch butterflies use milkweed plants to lay their eggs, as it is a necessary food source for their caterpillar stage. Through this planting process, friendships were strengthened, and the spirit of community was proven to be thriving in the Yuba Foothills. YES is determined to encourage local insects and wildlife to thrive as intended. Providing these endangered butterflies with the essentials for their survival will serve generations to come. The students and volunteers that planted each plant will be able to enjoy the coming generations of monarchs and their migrations, knowing they played a crucial role in their conservation.  Read the full post on ParentSquare