The monarch butterfly conservation project will restore 5 acres of overwintering and breeding habitat for the monarch butterfly on army national guard camp roberts and camp SAN luis obispo in…

The U.S. Department of Interior Fish and Wildlife Service Region 8 awarded a $414,878.56 cooperative agreement on April 15, 2025, to the Upper Salinas/Las Tablas Resource Conservation District under the Endangered Species Recovery Implementation program (CFDA 15.657) to restore monarch butterfly habitat. The project will restore five acres of overwintering and breeding habitat on Army National Guard Camp Roberts and Camp San Luis Obispo in California through April 30, 2029. Key deliverables include removal of invasive plant species, introduction of native plant species to support the monarch lifecycle, and implementation of habitat resilience improvements to address drought conditions and reduce fuel loads.

The restoration effort will incorporate pre- and post-restoration surveys to evaluate restoration success and provide recommendations for future conservation activities. Additionally, the project will fulfill Department of Defense conservation obligations under the Conference Opinion for the Endangered Species Act Section 7(a)(1) Conservation Strategy for the Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus), while enhancing installation resiliency at the Army National Guard facilities. The cooperative agreement structure enables the Resource Conservation District to collaborate with the federal agency in implementing these recovery actions aligned with broader endangered species conservation goals.

The monarch butterfly conservation project will restore 5 acres of overwintering and breeding habitat for the monarch butterfly on army national guard camp roberts and camp SAN luis obispo in california. The project focuses on alleviating the species decline by restoring their native habitat, improving drought resilience, and supporting monarch migration and breeding cycles. The project will remove invasive plant species and introduce native plant species to reduce fuel loads and enhance the resilience of the monarch s vital habitat segments. There will also be pre- and post-restoration surveys to assess how successful the restoration was and provide recommendations for further restoration efforts. The project will benefit the army national guard camps by increasing installation resiliency and fulfilling some of their obligations under the conference opinion for the department of defense s 7(a)(1) conservation strategy for the monarch butterfly (danaus plexippus) for mission and sustainment operations within the continental united states.