The population of North American monarch butterflies has plummeted from 1 billion to 33 million in just two decades. Now, a project is underway to revive the monarch by making an interstate highway the backbone of efforts to restore its dwindling habitat. By Janet Marinelli, July 11, 2017.

“During the winter of 2013-2014, only about 33 million monarchs made it to their Mexican mountain sanctuaries, a staggering drop from the estimated one billion recorded in 1996. A study published last year concluded that if current trends continue, there is a “substantial probability” that the number of wintering butterflies will fall so low that a single storm could virtually wipe them out, dealing the migration a fatal blow. To stanch the losses and safeguard the migration’s future, in 2015 and 2016 a pollinator task force formed at President Obama’s request released reports that detail a major new strategy to rebuild the butterfly’s wintering population, mostly through aggressive habitat restoration in natural areas, along roadways, on utility right-of-ways and farms, and in parks, gardens, and schoolyards throughout a broad swath of land that runs for 100 miles on either side of I-35…”