Timeline: We were pleased to see our first adult arrive in mid-June (14th) but there was no evidence of laying eggs for alomst a month. The main migration arrived in late July and although we initially saw 16a adults, all of them did not stay around. The first egg was discovered on July 8th and the first caterpillar on July 11th. The caterpillar was instar 4 so obviously there had been eggs laid at least two weeks earlier. Our first pupation was on the 27th of July. We surveyed for chrysalises in the field and found that most of them were in the eastern sections. We flagged their locations and had over 60 identified at the peak of the count.  The last egg found in the field was on the 31st August. This is very late and indicated that we would have Monarchs emerging into October. 

Field Count: The chart here shows the count of Monarch butterflies scared up in the field throughout the season. The peak number was 24 on the 26th of August, a month after the height of breeding and egg laying in late July. After the 26th of August the numbers seen in the field dropped off into the mid-teens or lower. In 2025 we had a drought which drastically reduced Monarch success but even then we had more in the field. This year was lowest production since we began keep records. 

Statistics: Every year we also rescue a number of eggs from our lawn and other areas that would be destroyed if left in that location. We bring them inside on the plant and allow them to grow on milkweed plants in water inside. These are the reared Monarchs that we release in addition to ones we 'release' as we watch, measure and tag those emerging from chrysalises in the field. The chart below shows the numbers 'released' versus the date. Brown are reared from eggs or larvae while green are the 'wild' Monarchs from the field. In 2026, we released 70 reared and 49 wild Monarchs. Of these 119 we tagged 25 with Monarch Watch registered stickers. 

By doing releases we also obtain useful statistics on the Monarch population. We sex the butterflies, measure their wing length, note their rearing, and tag them. This year of the sex distribution was 63 female versus 56 males., The average wing length was 52 mm, with the largest being 56 mm and the smallest being 42 mm. This last mentioned butterfly is smallest Monarch we have ever reared; usually the smallest is 46 mm.