Relay to protect Monarch butterflies treks through London

Butterfly wings were spotted on the backs of Londoners Monday morning.

Butterfly wings were spotted on the backs of Londoners Monday morning.

A group of supporters offered cheers to a runner passing through the Forest City in support of protecting endangered monarch butterflies and their habitats.

Jodi McNeil, of Orangeville, Ont. picked up where a London runner left off Sunday evening.

“The monarch butterfly is the ultra-runner of the insect world,” she exclaimed to CTV News London.

McNeil is just the latest to put her feet to the pavement during two relay runs covering 6,000 kilometres.

In 2019, ultra-runners in Canada, the United States and Mexico followed the 4,300 km migratory path of the Monarch butterflies from Ontario to the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Preserve in Central Mexico. Along the way, they raised $10,000.