The red admiral. The black swallowtail. And the beautiful, bright orange monarch.
Each year a network of volunteers fans out across Colorado to see how many of these, and other butterfly species, they can find. Those observations help scientists understand the health of the state鈥檚 butterfly population.
Our guest today says that work is vital because butterflies are sensitive to changes in climate and habitat. And butterflies across the U.S. . That鈥檚 according to a in the journal Science that incorporated some alarming data from the Colorado volunteers.
oversees the network of butterfly observers. It鈥檚 part of her job managing conservation projects for the in Westminster. The program has trained more than 300 citizen butterfly observers since its launch in 2013.
Shiran joined Erin O鈥橳oole to talk about the network, and what its findings can tell us.
Learn more about the butterfly monitoring network and its for people interested in becoming volunteer butterfly observers.
