By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
Del Rio has been designated as the latest “Monarch City USA,” city council members learned.
Mayor Al Arreola asked Mayor Pro-tem Steve Webb to read a proclamation naming a “Monarch City USA Designation Day” during the council’s regular meeting Oct. 10.
“For those of you who do not know, a Monarch is a type of butterfly, and you see them this time of year everywhere,” Webb said before reading the proclamation.
He then read the proclamation, as follows:
“Whereas, the Monarch butterfly is an iconic North American species whose multi-generational migration and metamorphosis from caterpillar to butterfly has captured the imagination of millions of Americans; and whereas, 20 years ago, more than one billions eastern Monarch butterflies migrated to Mexico, but in the winter of 2014, only 60 million made the trip; and
“Whereas, nearly a billion Monarch butterflies have vanished since 1990, according to data released by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service in February 2015; and whereas, Monarch butterflies rely on milkweed plants and other nectar plants for their food and home and these plants are increasingly vanishing all across America; and
“Whereas, cities, towns and counties have a crucial role to play to help save the Monarch butterfly and the city of Del Rio has played a leadership role by creating a Monarch way station, initiated by the Casa de la Cultura, planting milkweed along the San Felipe Creek and giving out milkweed plants on Earth Day by Del Rio Blooms; and
“Whereas, every citizen in Del Rio can make a difference for the Monarch by planting native milkweed and other nectar plants to provide habitat for Monarchs and other pollinators in locations where people live, work, learn, play and worship; and whereas, Del Rio is one of nine Monarch USA cities in Texas and the city of Del Rio is the first city along the southwestern border of the United States to be designated a Monarch City USA; and
“Whereas, the National Wildlife Federation’s Monarch City USA program, created in 2015, in Maple Valley, Wash., encourages America’s 19,000-plus municipalities to directly help the Monarch butterfly population recover by planting milkweeds and other nectar plants within their borders; and
“Whereas, if the municipalities do this, the Monarch butterflies will have stepping stones to stop in while on their migration journey; and whereas, we have a recognition program entitled ‘Monarch City USA,’ that municipalities can join by doing very simple, positive things like planting milkweed and nectar plants; now, therefore, I, Al Arreola, mayor of the city of Del Rio, do hereby proclaim Oct. 10, 2023, as ‘Monarch City USA Designation Day,’” Webb finished.
Arreola then recognized Community Services Director Esme Meza, who gave a presentation about the Monarch City USA designation.
Meza told the council Del Rio is the most recent city to receive the “Monarch City USA” designation and the first city along the southwestern U.S.-Mexico border to be designated.
Meza said she and Michael Garcia, the assistant to the city manager and grants writer for the city, have been looking at different designations for Del Rio, measures that could help the city as it applies for various grants.
Meza said the other cities in Texas that have received the “Monarch City USA” designation include Buda, Denton, Jayton, the John F. Ward Elementary School in Houston, Kingsville, Midland, Temple and South Padre Island.
“To be a member of ‘Monarch City USA,’ there are several things we have to commit to as far as positive actions for Monarch butterflies,” Meza told the council.
Some of those actions include publicly committing to helping Monarch butterflies survive and encouraging citizens to plant milkweed and other nectar-producing flowers on public and private lands.
“We’ve been working with Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, and Nora Padilla has been really instrumental in helping us with that initiative, and so, we have planted milkweed on our FEMA lots along the creek, and she has also handed out milkweed plants at events like Earth Day, and we had Del Rio Blooms also giving out milkweed plants during Earth Day,” Meza said.
Among other actions to which the city has committed as part of the “Monarch City USA” designation include supporting the national movement to create and enhance habitat for Monarch butterflies throughout the city and placing “Monarch City USA” signs throughout the city, Meza told the council.
“We also have the Monarch way station the council approved a couple of years ago. Lupita De La Paz presented that on behalf of the Casa De La Cultura, so these are some of the other things the city had already been doing, along with citizens and other organizations,” Meza said.
One of the other actions “Monarch City USA” designees are asked to do is host an annual Monarch butterfly festival, and Meza said the city will incorporate such a festival into its yearly Earth Day celebration in the spring.
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