See monarch butterflies up-close and personal at our daily butterfly releases! Our Monarch Butterfly Release Program happens daily at 11:15 a.m. and 3 p.m. through September behind the Nature Center. Admission is free and does not require registration.  Butterfly releases are dependent on both weather and availability of butterflies. Please call the Nature Center for updates at 847-985-2100.

Spring Valley's volunteers raise monarch butterflies inside the Nature Center and conduct special presentations. Whenever adult butterflies are available and ready to be released, volunteers will invite program attendees to help send the newly hatched butterflies off into the wild. Each fall, monarch butterflies migrate up to 3,000 miles from North America to Mexico. Milkweed is important to the survival of the monarch population, and this presentation gives information on the efforts required to sustain monarch butterflies.

The final releases of the year will take place at our special event, ¡Adiós Amigos!, on Sunday, Sept. 24 from 2-4 p.m. at the Nature Center. Celebrate the journey of the amazing monarch butterfly, as the final generation of 2023 migrates to Mexico. Get a behind-the-scenes view of Spring Valley’s volunteer-led monarch butterfly rearing operation and create a butterfly craft. Butterflies are released at 3 p.m. to begin their journey to Michoacán, Mexico. Enjoy refreshments after the release.

Volunteers are welcome to join our Monarch Butterfly Release program. Volunteers can expect to spend an hour or two each week helping to rear monarch butterflies at the Nature Center and assist with our public release programs held each day. Training is provided; no prior experience is needed. Please call the Nature Center if interested in helping with this popular program.