'Where are the butterflies?': A look at NJ's population ahead of awareness event

Don Torino, president of the Bergen County Audubon Society, looks forward to the organization’s annual Butterfly Day in collaboration with the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority as a celebration of the immensely positive impact conservation efforts have had on the Meadowlands.

Growing up in the Meadowlands in the 1960s, before even the Clean Water Act had been passed, Torino witnessed the “worst crimes against nature.”

“There was no place worse,” Torino said. “We were wandering around the meadows every day. That was our playground. And we started to see it disappear, we started to see it more abused.”

Starting in the 1970s, conservation efforts transformed much of the Meadowlands into a haven for nature. What was once known as “garbage island” became nature trails at DeKorte Park in Lyndhurst, making way for a comeback of wildlife and nature, Torino said.

“I really want to see this preserved as best you can,” Torino said. “And I think the best way to do that is through education.”

On Sunday, the annual Butterfly Day will take place at DeKorte Park from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The event is free.

It will provide a fun-filled day in nature while educating visitors on threats to butterflies and ways people can help them survive. There will be guided butterfly walks, information tables, butterfly talks, children’s activities, a kids' costume contest, music and more.

“Enjoy the day and enjoy the Meadowlands,” Torino said. “Enjoy the butterflies. Have some fun.”

Butterfly Day events

People attending the event can expect to see a variety of butterflies, including the monarch, the eastern tiger swallowtail and the red admiral. Visitors will have the opportunity to participate in hands-on exhibits and 30-minute butterfly walks hosted by the NJSEA and Bergen Audubon in the gardens at DeKorte Park.

Gabrielle Bennett-Meany, the manager of park, trails and open spaces for the NJSEA, will be one of the butterfly walk hosts. Though she notes that the park’s conservation efforts have helped butterflies survive, she sees fewer species than she used to due to an overall decline in butterfly populations, highlighting the importance of events like this in raising awareness.

“I've been talking to a lot of other folks that have large areas that are planted for butterflies and everybody is just noting less and less species around,” Bennett-Meany said. “Where are the butterflies? We would expect to see many more butterflies here.”

Threats to butterfly population

Torino attributes the decline of butterflies to habitat loss, pesticide use and the prevalence of nonnative plants across North Jersey, among other factors.

The focus of this year’s Butterfly Day is encouraging residents to plant native species in their yards. Bennett-Meany and other conservationists at DeKorte Park have planted a vast variety of native plants at the park over the years, and she feels that this, along with not using pesticides, has helped butterflies thrive there.

Torino believes that butterfly conservation has greatly benefited due to individuals planting native plants in their yards.

“More people are using native plants than ever before, than I remember,” Torino said. “ Butterfly conservation … can be impacted very strongly positively by individuals. And that’s a big part of what Butterfly Day is about.”

For example, the planting of milkweed has aided the monarch butterfly, which is classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. According to Torino, the monarch depends on milkweed to survive because it is the sole plant that their caterpillars can eat.

“The reason the monarch … is surviving, is more of the individual than anything else,” Torino said. “The migration of monarchs has kind of shifted to the northeast region where they're coming, migrating like birds through New Jersey now, and that's really because of individuals, and individual conservation groups and parks planting more milkweed.”

Native plants residents can use to attract butterflies and other pollinators include milkweed, buttonbush, black-eyed Susan and coreopsis. Torino will give a presentation on native plants on Butterfly Day and will also be giving some away to attendees.

“We can do this,” Torino said. “We don't gotta ask the governor. We don't gotta ask the president. We could just do this. No matter where you are, even if you live in an apartment, go to your park, go to your school, wherever you can do it and make things better. And that's what Butterfly Day is really all about.”

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ Butterfly Day celebrates Meadowlands comeback and awareness