How to order Butterflies for Release

Elevate your special occasion with the enchanting beauty of butterfly releases, symbolizing transformation, beauty, and the fleeting nature of life. Perfect for weddings, memorials, or celebrations, these delicate creatures add a touch of magic and significance, creating unforgettable moments for you and your guests. Watch as they gracefully flutter away, leaving behind a lasting and symbolic representation of the precious moments shared on your special day. Below is a detailed ordering guide to order your very own butterflies for release. 

     A. Ordering timeline 

     B. Releasing time frame 

     C. Shipping information 

     D. How to order Butterflies for release – step by step guide

     E. What are the next steps once your order is placed

     F. Helpful Links

A. Ordering timeline

As soon as you are aware of the date of your event, we encourage you to place your order right away. Raising butterflies for release generally takes a minimum of 6 to 8 weeks so advance ordering is critical. It is important to note that “butterfly for release” supply each season is limited and orders are completed on a first come first serve basis. You can choose your preferred shipping date for your order directly on the ordering page. 

Our team requires a minimum 6 to 8 weeks to raise butterflies, plus pre-planning, production of food and sustenance for the insects, appropriate staffing, and other variables. We also conduct thorough testing to ensure all butterflies are disease free and healthy. In all circumstances, we are working with a limited supply. For orders placed within less than 6 – 8 weeks to the delivery day, it is sometimes difficult for our team to fulfill, however, we prepare extra butterflies and most often can satisfy the order.

If at the time of ordering less than 6 to 8 weeks to the delivery date or the weather does not permit a specific butterfly release, or we don’t believe we are able to fulfill the order, we will attempt to source insects from another farmer to ensure there are butterflies for your event. However, other sources face the same availability issues as we do, so it is not always guaranteed they will be able to assist us.

We will use all available resources to fulfill your order and provide butterflies for your event, however, for orders placed within less than 6 to 8 weeks to the delivery date, there is no guarantee the order will be fulfilled. In the case of monarch butterfly orders, if we do not have sufficient quantities, we will substitute with painted lady butterflies of the same value.

If the event we cannot satisfy your order, we proceed with the following solutions:

• Reschedule your order for a future delivery date;
• Provide you with caterpillars to raise as butterflies to then release them for the same value as your order

If we believe that shipping your butterflies will not be safe and there may be risks with the delivery (pandemic shipping delays, forest fires in your area, local or global shipping delays, etc.) we reserve the right to cancel your order: the safety of the insects comes first.

All orders placed within less than 6 to 8 weeks to the delivery date will be satisfied in the priority they were placed and paid. Your spot on the priority list is secured when you place and pay for your order.

When placing a last minute order, we understand you may have a lot of questions, however, due to the time constraints to fill your order, we may not be able to provide fulsome answers to your questions, or be able to answer your questions at all before your order is complete. Our FAQ and blog answer most of the questions we receive.

We always encourage you to place your order more than 8 weeks in advance, however, we understand that is not always possible. In fairness, it is not always possible for our team of butterfly enthusiasts to fulfill orders placed within less than 8 weeks to the delivery date. We will do our best to accommodate your release date, in the event that you wish to cancel your order as we may not be able to meet your accommodation, please let us know in advance and a team member will email all your options that are currently available.

Nothing brings us more joy than to share these majestic creatures with you, and we work tirelessly to ensure that happens. We want to thank you for considering us and are mindful of how important your butterfly release is and the feelings attached to it. However, we want to be fully transparent regarding the rare occasions we are unable to fulfill your butterfly order.

B. Releasing time frame

Butterfly releases typically occur from late April to early October. Although late April and early October may be viable options, the season might commence later in May or conclude around September if the weather and overall seasonal conditions are not conducive to a release.

We provide butterflies for immediate release, meaning they are ready to be released upon arrival and do not need to be raised into butterflies. If you wish to raise/hatch butterflies before releasing them, please explore our butterfly kits for that option.

C. Shipping Information

We exclusively utilize Canada Post for shipping, and the available shipping methods, from slowest to fastest, include:

1. Expedited Shipping (slowest)
2. XpressPost Shipping
3. Priority Shipping (fastest)

You have the option to include the livestock guarantee on XpressPost shipping and all orders shipped with priority shipping include the guarantee of livestock. Expedited Shipping does not offer the guarantee of livestock. We strongly recommend choosing either XpressPost or Priority shipping for a quicker delivery to your region. The less time the butterflies are in transit, the better. Shipping times may vary depending on your location, and you can verify the shipping timeline through Canada Post directly. Your order will adhere to the shipping duration outlined by Canada Post based on your selected shipping method.

Canada Post operates on business days from Monday to Friday, excluding weekends and holidays. It’s important to be aware that Canada Post does not handle the processing, shipping, or delivery of packages on Saturdays, Sundays, and during holidays. Therefore, if a package is dispatched on a Saturday, Sunday, or a holiday, the processing, shipping, or delivery will take place on the subsequent business day.

We suggest scheduling your order to arrive prior to your event. In the event of a shipping delay by Canada Post, which is beyond our control, having an earlier arrival can help mitigate any potential issues. Typically, whenever feasible, we dispatch butterflies on Monday’s or as early in the week as possible, following the shipping method you have chosen.

Upon shipment of your order a tracking number from Canada Post will be provided by email. Please be aware that email updates from us and Canada Post might be directed to your junk mail or may be blocked, depending on your email settings. If you encounter any issues, you can reach out to our team at info@monarchbutterflies.ca, and we will gladly assist you. 

Using the tracking number, you can monitor the shipping status and estimated arrival date. If there are delays or you encounter any problems, contact Canada Post directly at 1-800-260-7678 for the most current information or visit www.canadapost.ca and enter the tracking number. Once the package is in their possession, they can provide the latest tracking and delivery details.

For any other concerns or issues, feel free to contact us at info@monarchbutterflies.ca. We’re happy to assist you.

All shipments are made through Canada Post and shipped to the address provided, however, they may choose, at their discretion, to leave your package at your front door, a side door, with a concierge, at a safe drop location, in a community mailbox, or tag it for pickup at your local post office. Although we wish they can hand-deliver every package, it is out of our control. Please ensure you provide the most accurate postal address and any special instructions if needed.

In the past, we’ve used other courier and delivery services, and our experience has been that Canada Post takes the most care when handling our packages. After years of service, we developed a relationship with Canada Post as they are aware of the contents of our packages and use special handling with every deliver

All butterflies are individually packaged for safe shipping. These butterflies are shipped in dark cool containers that naturally mimic the conditions for butterflies to be in a hibernation-like state. For pictures and videos of how we safely package your butterflies for release, please visit our blog and FAQ.

Upon the arrival of your order, refer to the easy follow instructions included in your package to facilitate the butterfly release. More detailed instructions for release, how to feed the butterflies can be found on our website by clicking here.

To learn more about about our shipping policies in details please visit https://monarchbutterflies.ca/about-us/shipping-policy/

D. How to order Butterflies for Release on website – step by step guide 

Step 1: Type in your search bar www.monarchbutterflies.ca

Step 2: On the toolbar, press “Shop”. Choose the second heading down “Butterflies for Release”

Step 3: Select the butterfly you desire to purchase. For this example, we selected Painted Lady Butterflies For Release

Step 4: You will be automatically redirected to the ordering page. The ordering page is where you can specify the desired quantity of butterflies for release, input desired delivery date and add net cages.

Step 5 (Optional): Scroll about half way down the page to see net cage quantity. Type quantity desired for a small or large net cage. This cage allows you to perform a mass release with many butterflies at once, providing a memorable and visually striking experience as you release the butterflies. 

Step 6: Select preferred delivery date. 

Step 7: Enter the quantity of butterflies desired in the text box to the left of the “add to cart button”. Please note that the minimum order quantity must be met, we cannot accommodate smaller quantities and are unable to make any exceptions due to packaging and shipping costs. 

Step 8: Once added to your cart, you should get a pop up window to check out or view the cart. Press “check out” and you will automatically be taken to the checkout. 

If you would like to continue shopping, close the pop up and continue shopping on our website. You can always access your cart and the checkout page through the button in the top right corner labeled “My Cart”.

Step 9: On the checkout page, you can choose to make a contribution, enter your billing and shipping details and place your order. Fill out all the required information, select your method of payment (Email Transfer, Credit Card, Debit Card Cheque, PayPal and other options that are listed)..

Step: 10 Once you enter your billing and shipping information you will be able to select the shipping method which are Expedited or XpressPost Shipping (guarantee of livestock not included) or XpressPost or Priority shipping (guarantee of livestock)and then press “place order”. We highly recommend opting for the quickest shipping options to ensure a shorter shipping duration. The shipping methods from slowest to fastest are:

1. Expedited Shipping (slowest)
2. XpressPost Shipping
3. Priority Shipping (Fastest)

Please note that we exclusively utilize Canada Post for shipping. Shipping times may vary depending on your location, and you can verify the shipping timeline through the Canada Post link: https://www.canadapost-postescanada.ca/cpc/en/tools/find-a-rate.page

Step 11: Check your email for confirmation of your order. If you did not receive an email confirmation, check your spam or junk folders. If you still cannot find an email from us, please email us at info@monarchbutterflies.ca with an alternative email for you. As your email may have blocked our emails sent to you based on your settings and security. This is more common with organizations emails such as schools. Simply provide us an email where we can forward you this information.

Thank you for your order. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to our team by email at info@monarchbutterflies.ca for any questions or concerns you may have. 

E. What are the next steps once your order is placed

Once your order is placed our team will review it and in the event we are unable to fulfill your order, there are any issues, changes, updates, concerns, etc. we will notify you as soon as we have an update for you via email.

Prior to shipping your order we will notify you via email which will include links to the instructions on release, care, feeding and more. This information can be readily accessed on our website under the Blog Post section “Butterflies For Release Posts” 

F. Helpful links 

Here are several valuable Blog Posts that cover a range of topics related to the instructions of releasing butterflies.

1. Planning ahead for your desired type of Butterfly Release 
2. How to Transfer Butterflies for a Mass Release
3. How to Feed your Butterflies: A Simple Guide
4. Warm & Cold Weather Butterfly Release Instructions
5. How to check total costs including shipping and taxes for your order