Monarch experience in Niagara allows public to tag, release and monitor a butterfly

Niagara Parks is holding live demos of monarch butterfly tagging this weekend in front of the Butterfly Conservatory in Niagara Falls.

The butterflies will then be released into the Niagara Parks Botanical Gardens before they migrate south to Mexico.

The public can tag, release and monitor their own butterfly as part of the free, annual Majestic Monarchs experience on Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Butterflies will be released hourly.

Monarchs are iconic orange, black and white butterflies classified as a “species of special concern” under Ontario’s Endangered Species Act.

The tagging helps researchers monitor the monarch population in Niagara to better understand how they’re adapting.

The tags are recorded and posted online, giving people the chance to potentially see where their tagged butterflies arrive at the end of their migration journey.

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