Newly Hatched Butterflies Released at Noon Lions Butterfly Garden, DeWitt, IA
DeWitt Observer STAFF REPORT [email protected] 19, 2019
Adult monarch butterflies covered approximately 15 acres of forest canopy in Mexico, a doubling of last year’s population, and a level not seen for 10 years.
A 2018-19 report by the World Wildlife Fund provides hope, say leaders of the Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium.
Members of the DeWitt Noon Lions have pitched in to help the insect with the development of a habitat in DeWitt. Lions Club International challenges clubs across the country to conduct practices that help the environment.
Lions members Peg Thiltgen and Monica Murphy are among the locals who tend to the garden — which is located in the eastern end of Westbrook Park — in warmer months.
The garden contains more than 10 varieties of vibrantly colored plants, and sprawls more than 200 square feet.
There is milkweed, butterfly bushes, purple coneflowers, asters, bee-balm, black-eyed Susans, Shasta daisies (for color), sedum, joe pye weed, and marigolds.
The garden and its bright colors serve an important purpose, Thiltgen said — to help monarch butterflies survive. Read More here.
