Celebrate the 45th Earth Day on Wed., April 22 by helping The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk make the planet a little more accommodating for one of our most-loved backyard visitors, the monarch butterfly.
Aquarium guests on April 22nd can assemble milkweed “starter cups” to take home and plant. Monarch butterflies lay their eggs exclusively on milkweed, and the newly hatched caterpillars feed soley on the plant.
“However, as fields and empty lots are developed, and as we use more weed-killers on our properties, milkweed has become harder to find,” said John Lenzycki, the Aquarium’s curator of animals. “This is one of the factors in a dramatic decline recently in monarch butterfly populations. But it’s also the factor that is the easiest to fix, and one that we can all participate in.”
Between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., Aquarium educators will help Earth Day visitors set milkweed seeds in starter cups, and explain when and where to transplant the growing plants. (Seed supplies are limited.) Visitors also can make butterfly headbands and learn about butterfly life cycles. A limited supply of butterfly temporary tattoos are available too.
The popular South Norwalk family attraction is focusing on butterflies for Earth Day this year to build excitement for its big summer exhibit, “Flutter Zone,” a walk-through experience featuring hundreds of exotic tropical butterflies from Asia, Africa and South America. Set outside on the Aquarium’s riverfront courtyard, “Flutter Zone” opens Memorial Day weekend and will be free with Aquarium admission.
In addition to the exhibit, the movie “Flight of the Butterflies” also opens Memorial Day weekend on the Aquarium’s six-story IMAX® Theater screen. This wonderful film tracks the incredible multi-generational migration of monarch butterflies to their overwintering sanctuaries in Mexico – a location that wasn’t discovered until 1975.
Milkweed is part of the summer story as well. The Aquarium is planting a milkweed garden adjacent to “Flutter Zone” to educate and encourage all of its summer visitors. The spot will be a certified monarch waystation designated by www.MonarchWatch.org.
The Aquarium’s special Earth Day activities are part of Party for the Planet™, the signature Earth Day event coordinated by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). It’s the largest combined Earth Day celebration in North America, with more than 100 AZA-accredited zoos and aquariums participating with special displays, events and give-aways.
Begun on April 22, 1970, Earth Day marks the anniversary of what many consider to be the birth of the modern environmental movement. Earth Day is the largest civic event in the world, celebrated simultaneously around the globe by people of all backgrounds, faiths and nationalities. More than a billion people participate in some way every year. The annual celebration broadens the base of support for environmental programs, rekindles public commitment and builds community activism around the world.
For more details about The Maritime Aquarium’s Earth Day / Party for the Planet plans, go to www.maritimeaquarium.org or call (203) 852-0700.