Forest Preseve Offers 'Monarch Way Stations' Program In August

Learn about monarch butterflies, milkweed and pollinators each Sunday in August during the Forest Preserve District of Will County's "Monarch Way Stations" program.

The free, all-ages program will identify milkweed hot spots that provide valuable habitat and nectar sources for monarchs. Stop by from noon-2 p.m. to learn about butterflies, milkweed and pollinators and search for monarch eggs and caterpillars in action. Guided pollinator hikes will be held at 12:30 p.m., 1 p.m. and 1:30 p.m.

Here are the dates and locations: Aug. 4, Hickory Creek Barrens Nature Preserve, New Lenox; Aug. 11, Hickory Creek Preserve – LaPorteRoad Access, Mokena; Aug. 18, McKinley Woods – Kerry Sheridan Grove, Channahon; and Aug. 25, Isle a la Cache Museum, Romeoville.

Pollinators are the creatures that help our plants bear seeds and fruit. Monarch butterflies, hummingbirds, bees and a host of other insects, birds and animals are all important pollinators. Three-fourths of the world's flowering plants and about 35 percent of the world's food crops depend on pollinators to reproduce.

Pollinators searching for food – most often nectar – pick up pollen, or powdery seed dust, on their feet, wings and bodies before they flit from flower to flower or plant to plant distributing the material.

For additional programs involving pollinators in the month of August, visit www.bit.ly/pollinatormonth.