11/08/2026
Volunteers across the West have been busy surveying overwintering sites! 🦋👀
We are excited to see the full picture once all data are submitted, but there are some initial observations we can share today.
The first, early-season, part of the count ended on Nov 1. Early reports estimate approximately 5,000 monarchs observed so far, though data are still coming in. These early results suggest an overwintering season population size similar to last year when 6,113 monarchs were tallied.
For the latter half of this year’s overwintering season, the super El Niño is projected to bring a mix of high winds, heavy rain, and warmer temperatures. We know that, for western monarchs, severe storms can break up overwintering clusters, knock butterflies to the ground, and drain their energy reserves. While every storm system plays out differently, we're deeply concerned this winter could cause severe habitat damage and drive up monarch mortality.
On a more exciting note, the Western Monarch Overwintering Science Initiative–a collaborative group of scientists, land managers, agencies, and other professionals–has begun tagging monarchs with Blu+ trackers at select overwintering sites, for a second year of groundbreaking research.
A big shout-out to all the community scientists, regional coordinators, and conservation partners who help power the Xerces' Society's Western Monarch Count — thank you!! We’ll continue to keep everyone updated with everything we learn this year.
🦋 Learn more & follow along ➡️ WesternMonarchCount(dot)org (full link in comments)
