Most people can easily recognize a monarch butterfly, but did you know that their numbers have suffered dramatic declines in the last 40 years? Habitat loss in both their summer and overwintering locations has played a major role in this decline.
Monarch butterflies only lay their eggs on milkweed and their caterpillars only eat milkweed. Therefore, superintendents can allow milkweed to persist in open areas and can introduce milkweed into suitable areas on the course if none currently exists.
A new program aimed specifically at helping superintendents to conserve monarch habitat can provide assistance in these efforts. Monarchs in the Rough, sponsored by Audubon International and the Environmental Defense Fund, provides superintendents with regionally appropriate milkweed seeds to restore monarch butterfly habitat in out-of-play areas. Monarchs in the Rough also offers signage, posters, and technical guidance to golf course managers in the installation and management of monarch habitat and ideas of how to communicate with course members about these conservation efforts.
