The Orange County Butterfly Network was started by the Irvine Ranch Conservancy. This butterfly monitoring program was established in 2011 in order to track long-term changes in relative abundance of butterflies based on climate, habitat quality, and management actions in southern California wildlands as well as to encourage appreciation of natural landscapes and their associated invertebrates. The nine original routes were established on the Ranch but there is now an effort to expand beyond the boundaries of the Conservancy.