Monarchs

April 6, 2023

Question: Do I need a permit to use monarch butterflies for educational purposes?

Answer: Yes, a Scientific Collecting Permit (SCP) is required to handle wild monarchs in California including for educational purposes. It is unlawful to collect, remove from the wild and/or captively rear monarchs in California without an SCP, per California Code of Regulations (CCR), Title 14, section 650(a)(opens in new tab).

Monarchs offer a great opportunity for children and adults to learn about migration and metamorphosis. However, due to recent fluctuations in their overwintering numbers, removing caterpillars from the population could have negative impacts. In addition, captive rearing has been shown to spread disease and affect monarch’s migratory ability. Rather than collecting wild monarchs or purchasing commercially available caterpillars for use in the classroom, we recommend creating a monarch garden that incorporates native milkweed or flowering plants where students can watch natural processes unfold without bringing the species into captivity.

Here are a few conservation actions that don’t require a permit:

1.  Add native flowering plants to your garden or restoration project. For the highest impact use early and late blooming species.

2.  Plant native milkweed where appropriate.

3.  Double check that plants purchased from nurseries are pesticide free.

4.  Limit pesticide use especially when monarchs are in your area.

5.  Become a community scientist by volunteering to collect data on monarchs and milkweed. Consider participating in the following community science projects:

a.  Western Monarch Genomics Project ( https://wildlife.ca.gov/Explore/Organization/WLB/Permitting#538763340-western-monarch-genomics-project )

b.  Western Monarch Milkweed Mapper ( https://www.monarchmilkweedmapper.org/ )

c.  Integrated Monarch Monitoring Project (https://www.monarchjointventure.org/mjvprograms/science/immp#:~:text=What%20is%20the%20Integrated%20Monarch%20Monitoring%20Program%3F%20The,from%20a%20variety%20of%20land-use%20types%20and%20regions. )

d.  Western Monarch Count (https://www.westernmonarchcount.org/ )

For more information visit CDFW’s Monarch Butterfly web page.