The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) today announced $2.9 million in grants to conserve monarch butterflies and other insect pollinators in 17 states. The grants will leverage $4.5 million in matching contributions for a total conservation impact of $7.4 million.
The grants were awarded through the Monarch Butterfly and Pollinators Conservation Fund (Pollinator Fund), a partnership between NFWF, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and Forest Service (USFS), Bayer Crop Science, Shell USA, and The Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation.
The projects supported by the 16 grants announced today will increase the quality and quantity of pollinator habitat for monarch butterflies, rusty-patched bumble bees, and other native pollinators. The projects will also enhance outreach and organizational coordination.
“Pollinators like monarch butterflies and bees are essential to the nation’s ecosystems and economy,” said Jeff Trandahl, executive director and CEO of NFWF. “The grants announced today will advance voluntary conservation efforts in 17 states by establishing and managing pollinator habitat on public and private lands.”
Collectively, it is expected that the projects announced today will:
- Restore and enhance more than 16,800 acres of pollinator habitat
- Collect more than 560 pounds of milkweed seed
- Propagate more than 195,000 milkweed seedlings
- Host more than 80 workshops and meetings that advance pollinator conservation
The monarch butterfly is one of the most iconic species in North America, and its annual migration cycle is one of the most remarkable natural phenomena in the world. However, over the past 20 years, the monarch butterfly population has declined by more than 80 percent throughout much of its range. Several other pollinators have experienced similarly dramatic declines in recent decades. Habitat loss is a primary threat to many of these species.
PATHFINDERS RC&D AWARDED
Pathfinders RC&D was awarded $205k over the course of three years to provide technical assistance on private working lands to help working land managers and producers develop management plans, implement conservation practices and enroll in Farm Bill programs to improve working lands functions and enhance pollinator habitat across an array of land ownership.
About the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
Chartered by Congress in 1984, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) protects and restores the nation’s fish, wildlife, plants and habitats. Working with federal, corporate, foundation and individual partners, NFWF has funded more than 6,000 organizations and generated a total conservation impact of $7.4 billion. Learn more at www.nfwf.org.