If I want to raise some monarchs in my classroom as an activity for my students, what do I do if one dies?

 While raising a few monarchs for educational purpose is not known to be harmful to wild populations, we discourage captive monarch rearing due to the risk of disease and reduced migration success. Instead we encourage engaging students in monarch habitat creation or restoration.

The death of monarchs and all organisms is a natural part of life and can be a great learning opportunity for students to understand all aspects of the life cycle. It can be an opportunity to learn about different threats monarchs face, like disease or parasitism. We encourage creating a schoolyard garden for butterflies or otherwise engage students in habitat creation or restoration. These are the primary conservation actions that carry the highest positive impact for monarchs. You can find more resources for educators here.