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San Antonio’s place along a major monarch migration route will take center stage Saturday as the 11th annual Monarch Butterfly and Pollinator Festival returns to Brackenridge Park.
The free, family-friendly event runs from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the park’s Pecan Grove, near the San Antonio Zoo entrance. It will feature interactive installations, hands-on conservation activities, music, food and more than 50 community partners working to protect pollinators and the ecosystems that sustain them.
Festival Director Ashley Bird said San Antonio’s geography makes it an important stop for migrating wildlife, including monarch butterflies traveling south toward Mexico for the winter.
“You literally have a funnel in which all of these millions of migratory animals, birds, bats, butterflies, all fly through, and San Antonio is right in the heart of that pathway,” Bird said.
The festival takes place during peak monarch migration season, when butterflies east of the Rocky Mountains pass through Texas on their journey to their overwintering grounds in Mexico.
San Antonio became the world’s first Monarch Champion City in 2015. Organizers say Project Bloom and other local conservation groups are also working to support the city’s renewal of its Bird City designation and pursue a new Bee City USA designation.
Interactive exhibits connect visitors to pollinator life
This year’s festival will feature three new immersive installations designed to help visitors understand the challenges facing pollinators and other migrating wildlife.
The Monarch Migration Obstacle Course invites children to race across North America in search of milkweed while navigating environmental challenges. The Lights Out! Bird City Maze puts participants in the role of migrating birds, navigating an 1,800-square-foot maze filled with urban hazards such as windows and artificial lights.
The Bizzee Bumble Bee challenges participants to build a bumblebee colony by collecting pollen from oversized Texas wildflowers while avoiding predators.
Bird said the festival uses interactive experiences to help people develop a personal connection with wildlife and understand how their choices affect the environment.
“We really focus on installations and activities where people get to have an empathetic experience about not only the monarch butterfly but also bees and birds and all the other pollinators that are really important,” she said.
More than 50 community partners, including the San Antonio River Authority, San Antonio Water System, San Antonio Parks and Recreation, Bexar Audubon and the Native Plant Society of Texas, will offer activities highlighting their conservation work.
Native plants, pesticides and everyday conservation
Organizers say the festival also aims to give visitors practical ways to support pollinators at home, including planting native flowers and reducing the use of harmful chemicals.
Bird said pesticide awareness is an important part of protecting the ecosystem, and people can make a difference by being thoughtful about the chemicals they use.
She also encourages residents to plant a variety of flowers with different shapes and colors to attract different pollinators.
Hummingbirds, for example, are drawn to red, trumpet-shaped flowers. Bees are attracted to bowl-shaped blooms, while butterflies often favor dome-shaped flowers.
Bird recommends choosing native plants whenever possible because they have evolved alongside local pollinators and can provide greater nutritional value.
“Having a variety of those flowers is what's most important,” Bird said.
She also described San Antonio as a kind of ecological rest stop for migrating wildlife, drawing a connection between the region’s tourism economy and its importance to pollinators.
“Tourism is such an important part of the San Antonio economic ecosystem, and it also is for our natural ecosystem,” she said. “We are a pit stop for pollinators.”
Festival explores the future of farming
The event will also include conversations about how technology and innovation could change farming and conservation.
Mitch Hagney, director of food sustainability at the San Antonio Food Bank, will speak Saturday at the Koehler Pavilion as part of the festival’s Nature Speaks conversations. His presentation will explore the future of farming and the potential for new technologies to reduce the use of chemicals.
Bird said innovations such as laser-based weed control could help farmers manage unwanted plants without relying on chemical herbicides, potentially reducing impacts on the food system and surrounding environment.
The festival’s programming also connects pollinator conservation to food production. Organizers note that about one in every three bites of food depends on pollinators.
September is designated Migratory Month by Project Bloom, with participating San Antonio restaurants featuring dishes made with sustainably sourced local ingredients to highlight the connection between pollinators and the food supply.
The festival is presented by Project Bloom, a nonprofit focused on inclusive education and community events that encourage positive environmental change.
The 11th annual Monarch Butterfly and Pollinator Festival takes place Saturday, October 3, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Pecan Grove in Brackenridge Park. Admission is free.
More information is available at MonarchFest.org and Project Bloom.
