Hocking Hills Monarch Waystation #20927

09/14/2026

It’s AND we’re in the middle of peak , so we’re looking for and their overnight roosts. Monarch Butterflies prefer to roost overnight in trees close to nectar sources. It’s like finding a 5-star restaurant next to a 5-star hotel.
We have many of their favorite nectar plants in our and other stops on the .
A plant list is on pages 4-6 of this UDSA document.

09/09/2026

Today is “Reaping Wednesday,” a variation on . **d

Meanwhile, the various , , , , **d, , and plants are nourishing a wide variety of bees and butterflies.

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09/07/2026

It’s - do you know where your are and where they’ve been?

Download the Project Monarch app, and start scanning for signals from monarch butterflies that have been fitted with a transmitter developed by (CTT). Transmitters operate on the same frequency as Bluetooth.

09/02/2026

Today is and we’re under a so we’ll be INSIDE sharing our favorite stories and investigating the recently released v.2 Project monarch app.

The app allows anyone with a cell phone to become a and participate in tracking that have been fitted with a transmitter developed by (CTT).

As more people use this app, we’ll learn more about the migration patterns through our region — like where did they come from and where did they go and how long did it take? —and what factors (weather patterns, nectar sources, etc.) affect their routes?

Monarchs most definitely pass through here on their migration south. Last year citizen scientists picked up one of the butterflies as it came south from Lancaster into the .

Transmitters weigh about the same as a grain of rice and operate on the same frequency as Bluetooth.

“The Project Monarch Collaboration is led by the Cape May Point Arts and Science Center (CMPASC) and Cellular Tracking Technologies (CTT), and brings together more than 20 partner organizations across Canada, the United States, Mexico, and the Caribbean, including Alas Mayas, Ambiosas, Birds Canada, the Cape May Bird Observatory, CONANP, Environment and Climate Change Canada, Environment for the Americas, FOCEN, James Madison University, Latin Monarch, Monarch Joint Venture, Monarch Watch, New Jersey Audubon, Princeton University, Profauna México, the Southwest Monarch Study, the University of Guelph, the University of Miami, the U.S. Forest Service, WWF-Mexico, and the Xerces Society.”
-https://celltracktech.com/pages/project-monarch-press-release-march-19-2026

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08/31/2026

It’s that time of year - our final of August — time to download the most recent version of the FREE app & help locate as they fly south to their winter locations.
Last year (2025) tagged butterflies were “pinged” as they flew through the , specifically in and .
https://projectmonarch.org/whats-new?fbclid=IwY2xjawUCW8pwZG9mBGV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDzQwOTk2MjYyMzA4NTYwOQABHvJY95SXLoA9ZXFx4Kw0nhRV6Zvy3D-4C4Rxj_pdTGtuV-3zzLMBnx2JI_Su_aem_uscFX7RPARew2L91yiCJgw

08/26/2026

Happy Beautiful !
We have several different types of native ( ) growing in the , and all have started to bloom.
We love and so do the because it “.. produces high-quality , rich in protein, fats, and minerals, and is critical for migratory insects like the .”
In our , ( ) is NOT a w**d, but sometimes we have to thin it out a bit because it spreads easily by its root system - but we’ll wait until it finishes blooming.

General information about goldenrod and how the genus supports pollinators and beneficial insects.

08/24/2026

This some of our winged friends are getting cues to head in a southwesterly direction, but peak migration in our area won’t be until mid-September.

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08/19/2026

We had a WONDERFUL today - our rain gauge read 2.5 inches since this time last week. As a result we found it easy to pull , , , **d, **d, , **d, and other non-native w**ds from our .

08/12/2026

Our rain gauge overflowed - at least 6” over the last couple of days, so we had a great time pulling w**ds today on .
Check out our updated display inside the Welcome Center - we have and we’ve collected from the **d in our and a great infographic on the lifecycle.
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08/10/2026

Happy ! Yes, it’s true, we’ve seen it ourselves! After emerging from their tiny little egg, the will turn around and devour its former home!

We’ve had at least a couple of laying eggs on our **d over the past few weeks so stop by and see if you can spot some beautiful Stripey in our . We’ve collected a few for our indoor display that shows the of the .
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Did you know the first meal most caterpillars have after hatching from their eggs is... their egg?!

We're back this week with another (bug) creature feature! The star of the show? Monarch butterflies🥰

We have it on good authority that the species that comes to mind when most people hear the word "butterfly" is probably the monarch - that or the big and beautiful blue morpho, but those aren't in Ohio so we're going to ignore them...

Before our native and equally beautiful monarch caterpillars develop their starkly contrasting yellow, black, and white stripes to warn predators of their toxicity, they're just tiny little grey worms with black heads - look, we all start somewhere, okay? And, before they transition to feeding on the milkw**d that makes them toxic, they first consume the eggshell, known as chorion, they just vacated because it contains important nutrition like protein and calcium that helps them get started on their ✨growth journey✨

Once they're adults, the last generation for the summer will demonstrate that they aren't just beauty but brawn too when they make a 2,500 mile trip down to South America to spend the winter! If you want to help support these delicate but durable bug marvels, you can plant native, late blooming flowers like ironw**d and goldenrod to provide fuel for them as they travel, and you can plant their host plants like common milkw**d and butterflyw**d to give their caterpillar stages something to grow big and strong on. To get some inspo, stop by FCPD site(s) Wahkeena Nature Preserve and/or Mambourg Park so see what a native plant garden can look like in action and get tips on how to make it happen on your property!