Releasing Butterflies

Can you picture the release of hundreds of Monarch Butterflies fluttering around a bride dressed in white? I recently learned about this ingenious idea. Sure would make a special event especially more memorable. You can find numerous companies that specialize in releasing various varieties of butterflies at weddings and special events/occasions. What about honoring a departed loved one at a funeral service?

This practice also raises some concerns regarding the Monarch's hereditary and innate programmed migratory actions. Many companies raise butterflies in a controlled environment, to provide an inventory supply source for the "releasing" contractors. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) regulates this industry. They will allow shipping of butterflies across state lines, but only to areas that the species has a native population already there. But in the case of the Monarch Butterfly with its innate migratory routes, if they are moved to a different area, with Monarchs present but of different blood-lines, will the offspring adapt to the migrating paths of its new home, or try to revert to memory patterns of previous generations?

Another question raised is if Monarchs are bred and cultivated inside a controlled environment and conditions, will they still instinctively know to migrate away from harmful winter conditions? Scientists have also voiced concerns about the possibility of transporting disease from a nursery environment and infecting butterflies in the wild.

Despite these concerns, interstate shipment of the Monarch Butterfly, with USDA oversight, is being done, without any detrimental effect to the Monarch that we can scientifically document.