This photo of a monarch caterpillar is from Dr. Logan Wood’s pollinator garden. The caterpillar forms a chrysalis and about 12-14 days later a butterfly will emerge.

Visitors to Minot’s Roosevelt Park Zoo on Sunday will have the opportunity to take part in Flutter Fest, an event culminating with the release of more than 100 monarch butterflies.

The release coincides with the annual migration of monarch butterflies making the journey to the south for the winter. Monarchs released on Sunday will be tracked.

From 10 a.m.-2 p.m., zoo guests can enjoy stations to celebrate pollinators and learn about the monarch butterfly migration and why pollinators such as bees, butterflies and even bats are important.

A limited number of guests can become hands-on citizen scientists by helping the zoo tag monarch butterflies to track their journey to their wintering grounds in Central Mexico.

Beginning at 1 p.m., Dr. Logan Wood, zoo veterinarian, will give a brief talk about the importance of pollinators such as monarchs. About 1:10 p.m., Wood along with zoo staff and volunteers, will release the butterflies. These events will be at the pollinator garden in the Children’s Zoo area.

For the first time, the zoo is offering guests the chance to sponsor their own butterflies. For $10, a guest will receive a monarch butterfly magnet, a one-of-a-kind button identical to their butterfly’s tag number, and a certificate with the migration route and instructions on how to track their monarch butterfly along its journey. These are limited in number and can be purchased at the zoo in the days leading up to the event or on the day of the event while supplies last.

Flutter Fest, sponsored by The Learning Tree, will include games and activities. Guests will be able to build their own bee houses and start their own pollinator gardens. They also will be able to create fun facts to take home and enjoy year-round.

Master Gardeners, The Learning Tree, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Lowe’s Garden Center and the zoo will have information booths at Flutter Fest.

Other activities planned will be a giraffe feeding station, black-and-white ruffed lemur and honey bee chats, and goat encounter.

Guests can experience the migration of the monarch butterfly with a special butterfly documentary to be shown at 10 a.m., noon and 3 p.m. in the zoo’s north auditorium.

“As always, our goal for Flutter Fest is to bring about awareness to these issues in a fun and entertaining way,” Wood said.

At Flutter Fest, he said, people can obtain a “Pollinators at Play” sign for $10 to help show their support for pollinators.

“This way, we can, hopefully, help inspire folks to plant more pollinator-friendly plants around their businesses, homes, apartments and properties while urging them to consider leaving the milkweed for the monarchs versus spraying it,” Wood said.

Milkweed is the host plant for the monarch butterfly. The monarch caterpillars feed exclusively on the milkweed leaves.