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From page 62... ... 62 Survey of Transportation Managers Methods The research team created a survey with 28 questions using Qualtrics, which were emailed in the fall of 2017 to a list of approximately 50 project contacts, including representatives from many transportation authorities, primarily states. These professionals were asked to share the survey with colleagues to increase participation in the survey. Read the entire page →
From page 63... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 63 8. Does your organization have any maps of levels of winter salt application on various roadways? Read the entire page →
From page 64... ... 64 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies 25. Can you answer questions about roadside mowing practices in your area? Read the entire page →
From page 65... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 65 The survey asked about the availability of GIS data regarding the application of road salt. While the greatest number of respondents indicated that they did not have this information, positive responses came from six states: Arizona, California, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, and Minnesota. Read the entire page →
From page 66... ... 66 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies there were 56% yes, 34% probably yes, and 9% no) Read the entire page →
From page 67... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 67 Question Survey Results Do respondents have personnel/interns that could conduct field assessments? Read the entire page →
From page 68... ... 68 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies Hearing directly from roadside managers and other transportation professionals bridged an understanding in what barriers and limitations prevent widespread adoption in restoring native plant vegetation in roadside areas. Through asking targeted questions about decision-making processes, the team was able to tailor discussions and tool development in a way that will make them more useful to roadside management entities. Read the entire page →
From page 69... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 69 • Stephanie Dobbs (Roadside Manager, Illinois DOT) -- Implementing a reduced mowing program in roadside ROWs statewide. Read the entire page →
From page 70... ... 70 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies Most Common Users The research team was able to profile two types of users for the Habitat Calculator: • Common: Individual or small team of DOT staff (e.g., any roadway authority, including state, county, or municipal) with a dedicated window of time (one to five days per year) Read the entire page →
From page 71... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 71 Does it provide continuous bloom throughout the growing season? Is it a diverse stand of mostly native plants? Read the entire page →
From page 72... ... 72 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies Locating Plant Materials • The Xerces Society's Milkweed Seed Finder provides a search tool for locating commercially available native milkweed seed sources by species and state. Available at: http://xerces.org/ milkweed-seed-finder. Read the entire page →
From page 73... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 73 Best Management Practices For detailed information on best management practices for monarchs and other pollinators on rights-of-way, consult: • The Federal Highway Administration's Roadside Best Management Practices that Benefit Pollinators handbook: www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/env_topics/ecosystems/Pollinators_ Roadsides/BMPs_pollinators_landscapes. • Additional guidance is found here: www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/env_topics/ecosystems/ Pollinators_Roadsides/BMPs_pollinators_roadsides.aspx. Read the entire page →
From page 74... ... 74 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies Roadside Habitat for Monarchs Frequently Asked Questions: Monarchs and Roadsides Monarch Butterflies and Roadsides How does roadside vegetation support monarchs? Milkweed on roadsides is readily used by adult monarchs who seek out milkweed stems and leaves to lay their eggs on and the nectar on milkweed flowers. Read the entire page →
From page 75... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 75 Does roadside vegetation that supports monarch butterflies also support pollinators and other beneficial insects? Read the entire page →
From page 76... ... 76 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies way to overwintering grounds in Mexico, researchers found hotspots of mortality due to vehicle collisions. Roadkill hotspots were in less densely populated areas and sites with a more arid climate. Read the entire page →
From page 77... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 77 Although milkweed, the common name for plants in the genus Asclepias, implies that the plants are indeed weeds, milkweeds are a diverse group of native wildflowers that are not listed as noxious weeds at either the state or the federal level in the United States. Milkweeds may have been perceived as weeds historically because a few species (out of the 70+ species in the U.S.) Read the entire page →
From page 78... ... 78 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies (butterfly and moth) species, wasps, flies, beetles, true bugs, and more. Read the entire page →
From page 79... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 79 Roadside inventories can also be used to map out existing weed issues and identify emerging weed problems. Those data can then be used to help target management operations and to evaluate the effectiveness of weed management techniques. Read the entire page →
From page 80... ... 80 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies Figure 43. Map depicting best time windows for management actions that may affect monarch breeding habitat (from the MJV, "Mowing and Management: Best Practices for Monarchs" handout) Read the entire page →
From page 81... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 81 when monarchs are present is more beneficial to the long-term quality of habitat for monarchs. Sources: Parr and Way, 1988; Williams et al., 2007; Mader et al., 2011; Forman, 2003; Noordijk, et al. Read the entire page →
From page 82... ... 82 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies Invasive plants on roadsides can greatly reduce the abundance of milkweeds by outcompeting them for water, light, space, and nutrients, and thereby limit the reproductive potential of monarchs. Invasive plants can also outcompete the wildflowers that serve as nectar sources for monarch adults. Read the entire page →
From page 83... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 83 The USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has produced monarch nectar plant guides for 5 regions of the country (and many of the state NRCS offices have developed lists for their state) Read the entire page →
From page 84... ... 84 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies Include species adapted for the soil conditions present at the roadside site (e.g., use moisturetolerating species for wet ditches) , or, if seed mixes cannot be context-specific, include species adapted to a wide range of growing conditions. Read the entire page →
From page 85... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 85 If a project goal is to highlight the value of DOT rights-of-way, sites planted with showy wildflowers to benefit monarchs and pollinators should be located in areas that are visible to the public, such as rest areas, or sites near farms that could benefit from the pollination services the roadside habitat would help to support (e.g., roadside sites near almond orchards in California) Read the entire page →
From page 86... ... 86 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies References Alcock, John., Lincoln P Brower, and Ernest H Read the entire page →
From page 87... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 87 Haan, N Read the entire page →
From page 88... ... 88 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies Morandin, L Read the entire page →
From page 89... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 89 Tilman, D., P Read the entire page →
From page 90... ... 90 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies Roadsides as Habitat for Monarchs Monarch Butterflies, Weeds, and Herbicides Monarch butterflies are in decline in North America, and restoring monarch habitat, including roadsides, is important to the species' recovery1. Monarch caterpillars require milkweed (primarily in the genus Asclepias) Read the entire page →
From page 91... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 91 5. limiting direct exposure of monarchs to herbicides when possible. Read the entire page →
From page 92... ... 92 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies Always apply herbicides according to label directions and use the minimum application rate that will effectively control the weed. Apply herbicides at the stage of growth when the weed is most vulnerable and the application likely to be most successful. Read the entire page →
From page 93... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 93 Use of noxious or invasive weeds by monarchs [sidebar] Adult monarchs feed on nectar from a variety of blooming plants, including some noxious weeds or invasive non-native plants (such as Canada thistle, Cirsium arvense) Read the entire page →
From page 94... ... 94 Evaluating the Suitability of Roadway Corridors for Use by Monarch Butterflies References 1. Thogmartin, W.E., López-Hoffman, L., Rohweder, J., Diffendorfer, J., Drum, R., Semmens, D., Black, S., Caldwell, I., Cotter, D., Drobney, P Read the entire page →
From page 95... ... Product D: Best Management Strategies and Decision Support 95 Regional Milkweed Identification Field Sheets A diversity of milkweed species can be found growing on roadsides. Milkweeds can occur within intact natural plant communities on roadsides and several species can also colonize highly disturbed roadsides. Read the entire page →

From page 62...

... 62 Survey of Transportation Managers Methods The research team created a survey with 28 questions using Qualtrics, which were emailed in the fall of 2017 to a list of approximately 50 project contacts, including representatives from many transportation authorities, primarily states. These professionals were asked to share the survey with colleagues to increase participation in the survey.