Wisconsin researchers use solar-powered tags to track monarch migration

Researchers in Wisconsin are utilizing new solar-powered radio tags to track monarch butterfly migration in real time. These lightweight tags, which weigh less than a grain of rice, are attached to the butterflies’ thorax. Unlike previous sticker-based methods that only identified origin and destination, this technology allows scientists to gather detailed data on flight paths during the journey.

The Xerces Society, a nonprofit focused on insect conservation, notes that monarch populations migrating to central Mexico have declined by approximately 80 percent since the 1990s. Understanding these specific migration routes is considered critical for protecting necessary habitats. Recently, staff and volunteers from the Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance released 30 radio-tagged monarchs at the Goose Pond Sanctuary to assist in these efforts.