Monarch butterfly populations have declined dramatically due to milkweed loss, and restoration programs address both the welfare of individual butterflies and the broader pollinator community.
While the welfare considerations for insects remain scientifically contested, the scale of monarch decline raises welfare concerns even under conservative frameworks for insect sentience. The starvation of monarch larvae unable to find adequate milkweed, and the disorientation of migrating adults in disrupted climate patterns, represent potential welfare harms affecting billions of individuals. The restoration of milkweed habitat also benefits the broader pollinator community including bees and other butterflies, creating welfare benefits across the insect community. The accessibility of milkweed restoration as a conservation action — any garden can host native milkweed — makes monarch conservation one of the most democratically achievable welfare interventions available to individual citizens.