The Monarch butterfly migration begins in September. The butterfly travels thousands of miles towards the grounds of Mexico through Iowa, U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. Recently, a monarch scientist, Lincoln Brower, said that the iconic orange-and-black butterfly is moving closer to its extinction.

The scientist and three nonprofit groups have appealed to the government to take a step in saving the monarch, as the population of species is continuously declining. According to petitioners, agricultural practices in fields are the major cause of monarch's decline.

Brower said that the species is in trouble. Last year, his yearly monarch count in Mexico had shown a decline of 90% over two decades.

In 1996, about 45 acres of Mexico wintering grounds were covered by monarch butterflies, but last year, the iconic orange-and-black butterflies were seen only in 1.7 acres of the area. Over past twenty years, the population of migrant monarchs has continuously declined.

According to Brower, Roundup herbicide, used to kill milkweed plant, is responsible for the decline in the numbers of monarch butterflies. Milkweed is a plant where monarchs lay their eggs. Apart from that, it is the only food for monarch caterpillar.

Brower said that it is necessary to bring changes in agricultural methods.

On Wednesday, Liz Block, a retired teacher, gave a presentation to elementary students on monarch. Liz said that there were fewer monarch eggs on milkweed plants this year.

An environmental policy adviser for the Iowa Farm Bureau, Rick Robinson, said the loss of habitation in Mexico and unfavorable climate are the recognized issues in monarch decline. He said that herbicide is not responsible for their decline because there was no control portion, so there would be other reasons.

He said, "The milkweed decline is less certain. The ecology of the system is too complex to blame Roundup for the decline of milkweed or monarchs".