efforts

Monarch butterflies face serious challenges across North America, and scientists and governments are working to understand how best to protect them. In 2022, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) listed the migratory monarch as endangered, reflecting major population declines. A later review in 2023 updated the status to vulnerable, meaning the species is still at high risk but not as immediately threatened as once feared.
In the United States, monarchs are not yet officially protected under federal endangered species laws. For years, conservation groups have petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to list the monarch as a threatened species. The agency has agreed that protection is “warranted but precluded,” meaning the monarch qualifies for protection but must wait behind species facing even more urgent threats.
The USFWS continues to review new research and has proposed giving the monarch a higher priority for listing. In late 2024, the agency released a detailed proposal estimating that eastern monarchs face a 56-74% chance of extinction within the next 60 years if current trends continue. Western monarchs face an even higher risk. The proposal also identified key coastal areas in California as “critical habitat” — places essential for monarch survival.
Canada has taken stronger action. In 2023, the Canadian government listed the monarch as endangered under its Species at Risk Act. This protects monarchs on federal lands, including national parks and wildlife areas, and requires the government to create a recovery plan that identifies the habitat monarchs need to survive. Some provinces, like Ontario and Nova Scotia, have also listed monarchs as species of concern or endangered.
Even though some long-term studies in Canada show stable monarch numbers, the overall picture across North America is still worrying. Habitat loss, climate change, and declining overwintering sites continue to put pressure on this iconic species.
Understanding these challenges helps us see why conservation efforts — from planting milkweed to protecting overwintering forests — are so important for the monarch's future.

How People are helping monarchs

Even though the number of monarchs breeding in eastern North America hasn't shown a clear long-term decline, the sharp drop in butterflies reaching their overwintering sites has sparked major conservation efforts across the continent. These efforts focus on one big goal: making sure monarchs have safe places to feed, breed, and migrate.
Many organizations — including farmers, conservation groups, and agricultural companies — are being encouraged to leave some areas free of pesticides so milkweed and nectar plants can grow naturally. These unsprayed spaces give monarchs the habitat they need to lay eggs and fuel their long journeys.
Across the United States, national and local programs are also working to restore pollinator-friendly habitats along roadsides, power line corridors, and other long stretches of land. Highway departments and local governments are reducing mowing, limiting herbicide use, and allowing milkweed to grow in these areas.
These simple changes create thousands of miles of “pollinator pathways” that help monarchs survive and reproduce as they travel. Together, these efforts show how small changes across many landscapes can add up to big benefits for monarch butterflies.

federal government actions

The U.S. government has launched several major efforts to help monarch butterflies and other pollinators as their populations have declined. In 2014, a national Pollinator Health Task Force was created to respond to the sharp drop in migrating monarchs. This led to a federal strategy focused on restoring habitat, supporting research, and working with states, tribes, and private landowners.
A key goal was to increase monarch habitat across the country, especially along the central migration route from Texas to Minnesota. Federal agencies began encouraging reduced mowing, less herbicide use, and the planting of native wildflowers and milkweed along highways, power lines, and other large stretches of public land.
Programs through the U.S. Department of Agriculture also help farmers and landowners create pollinator-friendly areas by planting milkweed, restoring grasslands, and protecting sensitive habitats. These partnerships have added millions of acres of improved habitat for monarchs and other pollinators. Overall, federal actions focus on one big idea: creating more safe, connected places for monarchs to feed, breed, and migrate, while working with communities across the country to protect this iconic species.

state and local government actions

Across the country, many states and local communities are stepping up to help monarch butterflies by protecting habitat and encouraging pollinator-friendly practices.
Several states have passed laws to restore pollinator habitat, plant native vegetation, and manage roadsides in ways that support monarchs. These efforts often focus on reducing mowing, limiting pesticide use, and planting milkweed and wildflowers along highways and public lands.
Some states, like New Jersey and Tennessee, have launched programs to create pollinator meadows, improve roadside vegetation, and add educational signs in parks. Others, such as Virginia, promote planting native species that provide nectar and shelter for monarchs and other pollinators.
Cities are also getting involved. Many have joined national programs like Monarch City USA, the Mayors' Monarch Pledge, or Bee City USA, committing to plant native milkweed, increase pollinator habitat, and reduce pesticide use. Some places even have special protections — for example, Pacific Grove, California, enforces strict rules to keep overwintering monarchs safe.
Together, these state and local actions create thousands of small but important spaces that help monarchs survive their long journeys.

National Research Programs

Researchers have explored whether roadsides could help monarch butterflies by providing long stretches of habitat filled with milkweed and nectar plants. A major national study found that, despite the challenges, roadside areas could play an important role in supporting monarch populations if managed carefully.
However, roadsides come with real risks. Cars and trucks kill large numbers of butterflies each year, and caterpillars living near busy roads may experience stress from noise, heat, and pollution. These dangers are especially high in places where migrating monarchs naturally funnel together.
Even with these concerns, scientists concluded that roadsides can still be valuable habitat because monarchs need so much space to recover. When managed with reduced mowing, fewer chemicals, and more native plants, these corridors can help connect the patches of habitat monarchs rely on during their long migration.

Monarch Gardens & Waystations

Creating butterfly gardens and “monarch waystations” is one of the most popular ways people try to help monarchs. These gardens can make a real difference, but they work best when they're designed with monarchs' needs in mind — especially the right kinds of milkweed and nectar plants.
In many parts of the eastern and midwestern United States, common milkweed is one of the most important host plants for monarch caterpillars. It grows in fields, roadsides, and gardens, and provides the soft, fresh leaves that female monarchs prefer for laying eggs. Because monarchs lay the most eggs in late summer, gardeners often cut back common milkweed earlier in the season so it regrows with tender new leaves right when monarchs need them most.
Other milkweed species, like showy milkweed in the West or green antelopehorn in the southern Great Plains, follow similar patterns — they're most useful to monarchs when their foliage is young and healthy.
Not all milkweeds are equally helpful. For example, butterfly weed has beautiful flowers but tough leaves that monarchs rarely choose for egg-laying. On the other hand, swamp milkweed is a favorite in the Midwest, though it can be harder to grow long-term because it prefers wet, sunny areas and doesn't spread easily.
Gardeners also need to consider how milkweed grows from seed. Some species need a period of cold weather before they sprout, and seeds can wash away or fail to germinate if covered with too much mulch.
Even with these challenges, well-planned gardens filled with native milkweed and nectar plants can provide essential habitat for monarchs — especially in places where natural habitat has been lost. When people plant the right species and care for them thoughtfully, backyard gardens can become small but powerful stepping-stones along the monarch's migration.