The Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium was established in March 2015. Adding milkweeds to agricultural landscapes is one of many Consortium goals. In order to further monarch butterfly conservation efforts, scientists need more information about milkweed phenology and persistence on the landscape, and how monarchs are using these plants because milkweeds are now absent from most agricultural fields. This study is being conducted over multiple years to examine both oviposition preference andlarval survival on nine milkweed species endemic to Iowa. These data will be used as a baseline for informing monarch habitat conservation and restoration efforts across the midwest.

The Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium was established March 2015. Adding milkweeds to agricultural landscapes is one of many Consortium goals. In order to further monarch butterfly conservation efforts, scientists need more information about milkweed phenology and persistence on the landscape, and how monarchs are using these plants, because milkweeds now are absent from most agricultural fields. This is the second year of a study to examine both oviposition preference and larval survival on nine milkweed species endemic to Iowa. These data will be used as a baseline for informing monarch habitat conservation and restoration efforts across the Midwest.