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Monarch Butterfly Week Set

The Audubon Community Nature Center has opportunities this month to get up close and personal with monarch butterflies.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, instead of its annual one-day festival, this year Audubon Community Nature Center is celebrating the monarch butterfly the entire last week of August and into early September.

Audubon is presenting a wide range of opportunities to enjoy, learn about and support Monarch Butterflies that actually extends from Aug. 21 through Sept. 3. Paid reservations are required for each of these programs on the day before they are held:

¯ Monarchs A – Z: Tuesday, Aug. 25, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. — Join local Monarch experts Jack and Diane Voelker to learn about their experience traveling to Mexico to see the monarch migration and what they have done locally to boost the monarch population. Fee is $12 for adults, $9 for Nature Center members and children ages 9-15.

¯ Raising Monarch Caterpillars: Wednesday, Aug. 26, 6 to 7:30 p.m. or Tuesday, Sept. 1, 5 to 6:30 p.m. — Learn how to find and raise monarch butterflies as they change from egg to larva to pupa, then finally emerge as adults. The presentation and hands-on experience begins indoors, followed by a short walk to look for signs of monarchs in Audubon’s milkweed patch. Fee is $12 for adults, $9 for Nature Center members and children ages 9-15.

¯ Raising Monarchs Family Program: Thursday, Aug. 27, 10 to 11 a.m. — Planned for families with younger children, this program meets outside in the Stephanie Frucella Education Pavilion. Fee is $8 for adults, $6 for Nature Center members and children 3-15, free for children 2 and under.

¯ Creating a Butterfly Haven: Friday, Aug. 28, 10 to 11:30 a.m. or Thursday, Sept. 3, 5 to 6:30 p.m. — Learn how to attract butterflies to a yard by adding what they need to survive and thrive. After the indoor presentation, take a short walk through Audubon’s garden to see examples of butterfly-friendly plants. Fee is $12 for adults, $9 for Nature Center members and children ages 9-15. (Registration for the Sept. 3 program by Tuesday, Sept. 1.)

¯ Meet the Monarchs: Saturday, Aug. 29, 9 a.m. and every half hour after; last time slot is 4 p.m. — Visit the free-flying Monarchs in a tent full of flowers. Visitors may get up close and personal with the butterflies: feed them, see their life cycles, and take photos. Fee is $6 for adults, $4:50 for Nature Center members and children 3-15, free for children 2 and under.

¯ Butterfly Plant Sale: Friday, Aug. 21 through Sunday, Aug. 30, dawn to dusk — With no registration necessary, stop by the Nature Center and peruse the selection of pollinator friendly plants for sale by the trail kiosk station. Prices are $5 per plant.

Face coverings are required for all participants ages 3 and up for indoor programs. They are also required for outdoor programs during which participants cannot maintain six feet of distance between family groups.

With the exception of the butterfly plant sale, space is limited and paid reservations are required by the day before each of these Monarch Butterfly programs. To register for one or more programs, call the Nature Center during business hours (9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays) at 569-2345 or go to AudubonCNC.org/Programs and click on “Current Schedule.”

Courier Capital LLC is sponsoring this year’s Audubon Monarch Butterfly Programs. Additional sponsors include: Bob and Kathy Frucella, Carnahan-Jackson Foundation, Chautauqua Region Community Foundation, Holmberg Foundation, Hultquist Foundation, Jessie Smith Darrah Fund, The Lenna Foundation, The Ralph C. Sheldon Foundation, Whirley DrinkWorks, The Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation, Metallic Ladder Manufacturing Corporation, the Boocha Family, Bush Industries Inc., Community Foundation of Warren County, Hal and Mary Conarro, Defrees Family Memorial Fund, Chautauqua Lake and Watershed Management Alliance, and Univera Healthcare.

The Audubon Community Nature Center is located at 1600 Riverside Road, one-quarter mile east of Route 62 between Jamestown and Warren. While the Nature Center building is not open for walk-in visitors just yet, you are welcome to visit the 600-acre nature preserve from dawn to dusk daily. Enjoy the native tree arboretum, gardens, picnic area, and six miles of trails, and view Liberty, Audubon’s non-releasable Bald Eagle, while practicing safe social distancing measures.

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