 and presented by corporate partner Subaru. The initiative […] "'Pin It")
Save the Butterflies: Subaru Partners with NWF for Butterfly Heroes Project
Subaru is partnering with the NFW for the Butterfly Heroes project, to provide habitats for the dwindling numbers of monarch butterflies
Photo: Kenneth Dwain Harrelson
No, Butterfly Heroes is not the long-awaited sequel to A Bug’s Life, and yes, I know that would be awesome, but I’m just a writer in Nowhere, Ohio, so I can’t help you there. Instead, Butterfly Heroes is a project launched by the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) and presented by corporate partner Subaru. The initiative hopes to get 100,000 Americans to pledge their support to save the monarch butterfly, whose population has dropped as much as 90% since 1996, when estimates hovered around one billion butterflies. For those who are bad at math, that puts us at about one hundred million remaining monarchs.
Why is it important to preserve the monarch butterfly population? In an ominous tone that is reminiscent of Marky Mark’s discussion of bees in that terrible movie I for some reason paid $5 for at Target one drunken night The Happening, Collin O’Mara, president and CEO of NWF, explains that butterflies and other pollinators (like hummingbirds and Mark Wahlberg’s bees) are responsible for “one of three bites on average dinner plate.”
Someone paid to see The Happening?
To get the 100,000 Americans to pledge their support, the NWF plans to distribute more than 50,000 Butterfly Hero Garden Starter Packets to individuals who take the Butterfly Hero pledge. Subaru will hand out an additional 50,000 kits at its dealerships throughout the United States. But it’s not just Subaru backing the initiative. The Disney Conservation Fund and Botanical Interests are also backing the project to ensure its success.
So what can you do when you take the pledge to protect and preserve our world’s butterfly population? The easiest yet most effective thing you can do is to plant milkweed seeds in your yard, garden, and community spaces. Seeds are provided in the starter packets from the NWF, but they can be easily obtained online or at stores such as Lowe’s.
Be a hero–save the butterflues
Spread the word by taking a photo of yourself making the international sign of the butterfly. Post it to social media encouraging people to plant milkweed, and then submit the photo online. Doing so will get you a free kit while supplies last. If you enter by June 1st, you’ll even be entered to win a trip for four to Walt Disney World.
Monarch butterfly numbers have dropped dramatically due to loss of habitat here in the US, as well as degradation of their winter habitats in the south. The Butterfly Heroes project hopes to address that with the planting of milkweed and nectar plants, which provide a home for the monarchs to raise their young, as well as food, water, and cover from the elements. The NWF also recommends installing bird baths or other water fixtures in your garden. Doing so will earn your butterfly station a designation as a Certified Wildlife Habitat.
Save the butterflies, because they are so much cuter than spiders
In addition to handing out Butterfly Hero garden kits at dealerships, Subaru will also install hundreds of demonstration gardens on dealer lots, to showcase to customers how these gardens work. Alan Bethke, vice president of marketing at Subaru of America, summed the project up nicely: “Through our ‘Subaru Loves the Earth’ initiative, we are always looking for opportunities to help raise awareness of critical issues affecting wildlife and our environment and we’re excited to work alongside the National Wildlife Federation to empower thousands of Butterfly Heroes nationwide.”
Timothy Moore takes his leadership inspiration from Michael Scott, his writing inspiration from Mark Twain, and his dancing inspiration from every drunk white guy at a wedding. When Tim is not writing about cars and money, he’s working on his novel or reading someone else’s, geeking out over strategy board games, hiking with his pooch, or channeling his inner Linda Belcher over beers with his friends. See more articles by Timothy.