Bluetooth-enabled tags let the public monitor monarch butterfly migration in real time

For the first time in New Brunswick, Nature NB used solar-powered Bluetooth BluMorpho tags on monarch butterflies, partnering with the Saint John Naturalist Club, Point Lepreau Bird Observatory and Environment and Climate Change Canada. Weighing about 0.066 g, the tags attach to the thorax and emit a signal that any phone with Bluetooth within 100 m can capture, automatically adding a data point to the free Project Monarch app.

Funded by the Environmental Trust Fund of New Brunswick and federal supplies, the program aims to tag up to 22 butterflies this season, though customs delays have held back some units. Initial data have confirmed Point Lepreau as a key stopover and shown three butterflies blown into Nova Scotia by strong westerly winds. Researchers say the detailed routes will help identify essential migration corridors, guiding future habitat protection efforts.