October 28th 2023

New technology developed by a Cape May-based telemetry company is set to revolutionize the way monarch butterflies are monitored, and even lets the public help!  Cape May is one of the most crucial legs on the epic monarch migration, providing an important resting ground as they continue their journeys north or south.

(A general video about Cape May's monarchs)

The new tech is also a huge win for the area's first tech hub, located in the new business center at the Cape May Airport, and about 5 years old.

The new device will be used in The Monarch Monitoring Project, a long-term study on monarch migration through Cape May, NJ. It is a part of the New Jersey Audubon Research Department, and closely affiliated with the Cape May Bird Observatory. This project, started in 1990, is the longest-running monarch migration monitoring project in North America, and is one of the best sources of information on the status of monarch populations that migrate along the Atlantic coast.

This program was initiated by Dick Walton and Lincoln Brower, and involves driving a fixed route through the town three times daily during the fall months, and all monarchs seen are counted. The Cape May monarch program also involves capturing and tagging monarchs with uniquely numbered stickers (not the same as MonarchWatch stickers), and there is a large outreach component to the project; since this site is frequented by thousands of tourists and birders, the monarch team regularly gives monarch demonstrations at the hawkwatch pavilion.

The Cape May Point Science Center (CMPSC) along with Cellular Tracking Technologies (CTT) launched Project Monarch on September 21st in the courtyard pollinator garden of the science center.

(First public demo of brand new tracking technology)

A drop of eyelash glue is all it takes to attach the world’s smallest solar-powered tracking device to the thorax of a monarch butterfly. However, it will take a team of community scientists to help track the monarchs on their epic migration to Mexico.

These revolutionary tracking devices were developed by Cellular Tracking Technologies, a wildlife telemetry company based in Cape May, NJ. The devices weigh about as much as a grain of rice – making them light enough for a butterfly to carry – and transmit over the same frequency as Bluetooth, allowing them to be detected by a smartphone.

(Cellular Tracking Technologies are headquartered in the Cape May Airport Tech Hub, near Cape May Brewing)

By utilizing a free smartphone app called Project Monarch (available on iOS and Android), members of the public can become community scientists themselves and search for monarchs, then upload any observations.

The data generated by community scientists using the app will allow scientists to track the movements of monarch butterflies in detail never previously imagined, including how monarchs utilize key stopping points along migratory routes, as well as details about the speed and direction of migration, helping identify the most important sites for habitat conservation and restoration. Ultimately, this technology can help guide conservation planning and lead to increases in monarch populations.

(The new Cape May Pt Science Center)

A crowd of over one hundred members of the local community gathered around a folding table to watch the glue dry and the newly-tagged butterflies take flight.

Meanwhile, the sounds of smartphone pings were heard throughout CMPSC’s courtyard as people using the Project Monarch app climbed the detection leaderboard. In total, 10 butterflies were tagged at the launch event; however, CMPSC has plans to release over 100 tags this season. Stay tuned to CMPSC’s Facebook and Instagram pages to get the latest information on upcoming public tagging demos.

(Cellular Tracking Technologies HQ)