“The federal government on Monday pledged $3.2 million to help save the monarch butterfly, the iconic orange-and-black butterfly that can migrate thousands of miles between the U.S. and Mexico each year. In recent years, the species has experienced a 90 percent decline in population, with the lowest recorded population occurring in 2013-2014.”

“About $2 million will help restore…habitat…including more than 750 schoolyard habitats and pollinator gardens. The rest will be used to start a conservation fund — the first dedicated solely to monarchs — that will provide grants to farmers and other landowners to conserve habitat.”

“The magic of the monarch butterfly is that little patches matter,” said US Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe at a news conference in Washington. Piece by piece, he said, “we can make a difference on a continental scale.”

The takeaway: PROTECT COMMON MILKWEED.        PLANT COMMON MILKWEED.

Read the full article: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/u-s-government-pledges-3-2-million-save-monarch-butterfly/