Discussions

Hi everyone, you may have seen our Monarch raising caterpillar kits for sale on the classifieds page, we had a concern about them and I would like to share our response to the concern for everyone to see in case there may be some more.  
 
“Thank-you for bringing this concern to light, we will remove the add for now and consult with Manitoba Conservation on our own.  
 
In order to clear the air around our kits please allow me to explain. We do not sell caterpillars in our kits, what we offer is the tools to allow people to take care of a Monarch Caterpillar and experience their amazing journey.  
Our kit’s cost is for the time it takes to harvest and bleach-treat Milkweed leaves (to treat for OE, a Monarch Parasite), the cost of the cage itself, the instructions, and 24/7 access to our knowledge to help anyone to purchases the kit to have the greatest chance possible to raise their Monarch from a caterpillar to an egg.  
 
As it stands in the wild, a Monarch caterpillar has less than 1% survival rate to become a butterfly. This is due to pesticides, predators/parasites, and most importantly loss of habitat.  
Since Monarch Caterpillars strictly feed on Milkweed which is labelled as a “Noxious Weed” in Manitoba, we believe (along with tens of thousands of other enthusiasts in North America) that their best chance is to give them a safe home while they journey through their life cycle, and release them once they stretch their wings after eclosing from their Chrysalis.  
Monarch Homestead has had over a 90% success rate of our caterpillars that we raise ourselves and the ones that people have received in their kits to eclose to full grown butterflies, they are then released back into the wild to help increase the population.  
The kits have allowed people a simple way to get involved and once someone has purchased a kit and raised their caterpillar successfully to a butterfly then we only charge for the milkweed ($5/bag) and provide them with another caterpillar to protect.  
We also use the funds from the kits to host workshops, guided tours, and school presentations to raise awareness of the Monarch’s Plight.  
 
Just want to let you know our intent is 100% protection of the species and we believe our kits have the best influence on raising awareness and showing the general public why it is important to protect the species and how to do it.  
 
I do want to thank you again for bringing up this concern as it is the first time we have seen it and will speak to Manitoba Conservancy.  
If you would like to help us help Monarchs, please do your part to share the knowledge we have shared with you to help take Milkweed off the noxious weeds list as 90% of the cause of population decline is loss of habitat.  
 
Thank you for your time.  
 
Sincerely,  
 
Danial Forster  
Monarch Homestead  
204-264-0650”  
 
Just wanted to clear the air, our kits are NOT for pet butterflies, they are for an experience and to allow people an easier way to help the population. Thank you, and if you have any questions please do not hesitate to email us at www.MonarchHomestead.ca