A monarch butterfly emerges from its chrysalis in a Kalispell resident's garden on Aug. 24, 2025. Ross, a local landscaper, conservationist and citizen scientist, said the butterfly was one of four adults that survived from the eight caterpillars she initially found in her garden, an unprecedented occurrence in the Flathead Valley. (Photo by Kathy Ross)
March 1, 2026
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March 8, 2026 midnight
Monarch meditation: Butterfly struggles to survive with loss of habitat
The monarch butterfly is iconic in North America — but in Montana, it is a rare sight. That’s why when landscaper Kathy Ross discovered monarchs breeding in a client's Kalispell garden last summer, she knew it was extraordinary.