TULSA, Okla. — You might have seen a lot of Monarch Butterflies lately in the state of Oklahoma. That's because they're migrating south to Mexico to find warmer temperatures.
But it's still warm here, so there are plenty of monarchs. Check out the picture below of them recently roosting in Nowata County, Oklahoma.
But that's all going to change soon with an incoming cold front.
"Anything that's probably going to be below that 60 to 50 degree range is when you're going to be pushing what they're comfortable with and what they're trying to move from," said Patrick Hayes, Naturalist for Tulsa County Parks.
The coldest temperatures of the season so far are on the way and that's probably going to push them out of the state.
"I do expect that migration to move past us in the next week or so," said Hayes.
Milkweed and especially Frostweed are great plants to help attract and sustain monarchs.
"Right now Frostweed is growing and it's blooming and it's just decadent to monarchs. So they're flocking to this Frostweed and getting some of that nectar. Getting that energy to continue on their trip south," explained Hayes.
Many states right now are in serious drought including Oklahoma and Texas. The red color on the map below represents extreme to exceptional drought. This impacts butterflies because it could deplete their food supply.
"There are challenging areas in our state that are in extreme drought that are probably not seeing the same kind of populations that they've seen before," said Hayes.
You can always increase the number of plants in your yard to help them.
"The more that we plant a pollinator habitat we're going to add to the diversity of our area. I'd always love to see more, but what I see right now is good," said Hayes.
So what can you plant to attract monarchs each year? Hayes has some tips:
"I plant Yarrow. I plant sunflowers. I will even have some African Violets. So lots of different things are going to be adding to this cornucopia. So the more food we can have the better off that we're going to have a better environment for monarchs."
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