Monarch Day of Action 2025 Recap

By: Maiah Rivas

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Fourth Annual Monarch Day of Action! This year, we welcomed 230 attendees who helped us plant 150 native plants at Willow Springs Park. Thank you to our 13 event partners who provided our guests with amazing activities and resources. If you were not able to make it, keep reading to learn more about Monarch Day of Action and consider joining us at next year’s event!

Don’t feel like waiting? We don’t blame you! Sign up for our newsletter here or follow us on Instagram or Facebook @lbsustainability to stay updated about our monthly events.

About Monarch Day of Action

Monarch Day of Action is an event held at Willow Springs Park to raise awareness about Monarch Butterflies and Narrowleaf Milkweed. Currently, Monarch Butterfly populations are threatened by extreme heat, drought, and the use of Tropical Milkweed.

Monarch Butterflies are temperature sensitive. During record heat waves, consistently high temperatures put the population in danger. Additionally, high temperatures can exacerbate drought conditions, threatening milkweed populations. Narrowleaf milkweed (Asclepias fascicularis) is a California native host plant for monarchs. Monarch Butterflies are picky and only eat milkweed as a caterpillar. A decrease in milkweed therefore leads to a direct decrease in monarchs.

Lastly, tropical milkweed (Asclepias curassavica) in residential areas can contribute to a decrease in monarchs. Tropical milkweed is not native to the United States and does not die back in the winter. This allows for a parasite, Ophryocystis elektroscirrha (OE), to accumulate on the milkweed's leaves. Consuming OE can impact reproduction and migration patterns, threatening Monarch populations. 

Check out the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation for more information about Monarch Butterflies and their latest population count updates.

Event Recap

On March 15, 2025, attendees visited Willow Springs Park to enjoy a fun day filled with activities, educational resources, and native flora planting activities. They had the opportunity to meet other community members and partners, including:

Throughout the event, participants engaged with our partners and their activities. This included creating seed balls, doing crafts, drawing chalk art, and listening to a bilingual storytime! The event was also accompanied by music from DJ Phatrick, creating a great atmosphere to learn and make new friends. 

Bilingual Story-time circle hosted by LB Main Library (left). Attendees using nature elements and crayons to color their Monarch Butterflies in a craft activity (right).

With the help of our volunteers, we planted 150 native plants, including Narrowleaf Milkweed, Ceanothus, Sun Cups, Telegraph Weed, Purple Sage, and more. Participating attendees were taught the importance of Milkweed and other pollinator plants by Giangelo Leos from the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. Then, volunteers were instructed on the best practices for planting by Office of Climate Action & Sustainability Program Specialist Gunnar Swanson. From there, volunteers paired off to plant these native plants. At the end of the day, visitors left the event with smiles on their faces and a free Narrowleaf Milkweed in their hands courtesy of Neighbor-to-Neighbor!

Caption: A Narrowleaf Milkweed sapling ready to be planted (left). Two participants planting a Narrowleaf Milkweed (right).

Upcoming Events

Make sure to check out our Earth Month community calendar for more local sustainable events taking place throughout April! We hope to see you at our Fourth Annual City Nature Challenge at Willow Springs on Saturday, April 26th. Stop by to sharpen your skills as a community scientist by observing native plants and animals and sharing your findings using the iNaturalist app. This event will also feature a guided walk, scavenger hunt, and other activities! Learn more and register for the event at lbcity.info/cnc.