Disney’s Groundbreaking Monarch Butterfly Research Takes Flight at EPCOT

Something truly magical is happening at the 2025 EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival—and it’s not the fantastic food, drinks, or colorful topiaries.

2025 EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival

Disney’s Conservation Team is launching a small initiative with a big impact! The team is protecting one of nature’s most iconic insects: the North American monarch butterfly.

The best part is how they are doing it… with teeny, tiny backpacks.

A Butterfly Breakthrough

The mini radio telemetry tags— nicknamed “baby backpacks”—are about the size of a grain of rice.

Disney

They are helping Disney’s scientists study the habits of monarch butterflies in a whole new way.

“They use that same radio frequency, just like our phones,” said Morgan, Disney’s Conservation Programs Manager and one of the lead researchers focused on the monarch butterfly. “It’s the same type of tech that has been used for a bunch of different animals. It’s just now, for the first time, small enough to use on teeny, tiny, little insects.

By attaching these tags, the Conservation Team can track the monarchs’ movements and study their preferences for different species of milkweed—the caterpillars’ favorite food.

Why Milkweed Matters

A significant threat to the monarch butterfly is a parasite known as OE, which is often found on tropical milkweed.

Disney

Native milkweed dies off in the winter, but tropical milkweed does not, and it builds up harmful levels of OE, negatively impacting almost every aspect of butterfly life. Sadly, research estimates that about 80% of Florida monarchs have the disease.

Understanding how monarchs interact with various types of milkweed can help conservationists recommend safer, healthier options to protect the species.

Dr. Zak Leads the Way

Disney

Disney Conservation Director Dr. Zak leads the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) SAFE (Saving Animals From Extinction) Program for the monarch butterfly.

This is a nationwide initiative adopted by over 100 AZA-accredited facilities.

The main goal? To help monarchs thrive year-round by creating safe breeding, migratory, and wintering habitats.

“Disney is really a major player when it comes to the impact we can have on wildlife through our science and our subject-matter expertise that we have by being part of the AZA community,” said Dr. Zak.

His team plans to share their findings from the EPCOT research with partner facilities across the country.

Visit Butterfly Landing

Butterfly Landing

Are you visiting the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival? Then you can witness this incredible conservation work up close!

Every Tuesday at 9:30 a.m., head over to Butterfly Landing near Journey Into Imagination With Figment to watch the process in action.

And look closely, you might spot one of the monarchs wearing a rice-sized backpack!