Association For Butterflies

The Association For Butterflies will be offering an online Monarch tagging class beginning Sept. 10 and continuing for two weeks.

"Magical Monarchs and Their Migration" will consist of two online sessions, including discussion times, to be studied at a time that is convenient for you! Lessons will be given through a colorful PowerPoint, relevant to the material.

We will only accept a maximum of 15 students, so hurry and sign up for this class. The fee will be $20 for full members (levels 1 & 2), $25 for associate members (levels 3 & 4) and $30 for supporter members (level 5). Non-members' fees will be $40.

You will be provided with 5 official tags from Monarch Watch. The registration fee will include the tags.

You will be required to read the information and then tag your 5 Monarchs. The butterflies may be caught from the wild, raised by you, or bought from another butterfly farmer.

The third and final session will be scheduled by you and approved by the instructor who has been raising Monarchs for the past 6 years and tagging them for the past 5 years. You will tag your monarchs, report on the results and be required to take an online quiz, to affirm you have read and understood the material and tagged the butterflies.

Butterfly farmers ~ this is a great opportunity to increase your business.

After passing the class, you will be experienced enough to be able to conduct your own tagging classes. This may be accomplished through local libraries (charge a set fee and charge for the butterflies.) You can also give classes through your local community education program. Contact them to set up a time. They will advertise your class, register your students and provide a space in which to teach your class and pay you by the hour. Nature centers are also good venues for this activity. Print some flyers, have the center include your class in its newsletters and you have an interested audience who is anxious to learn all about Monarch tagging.

The outline topics include:

* Overview of migration ~ an unsolved mystery
*Fall migration patterns
*Latitude and longitude
*Overwintering areas ~problems and issues
*Importance of fall-blooming plants
*Why tag monarchs?
*Monarch Watch program, including Waystations
*How to tag
*Tag recoveries
*The spring northward migration

Don't miss this opportunity to participate in this nation-wide effort this fall! Your participation will help researchers study monarchs' migration patterns and hopefully further this beautiful butterfly's survival

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