The Monarch Butterfly Migration Is Here!

This afternoon when I saw several spots of orange flitting in and out of the purple asters in my backyard, I knew the monarch butterfly migration was in full force.  Their distinctive orange and black features seem to glow in the fall sunshine.

Every time I see a monarch in the fall I remember one of my earliest assignments in my high school Earth Science class.  One day our teacher took us outside and lined us up about 15′ apart along one of the school drive ways that ran east to west on the property.  Our assignment:  count the monarch butterflies that flew in the space to our right.   Much to our surprise, we counted hundreds in just one hour!  At the end of the day, the teacher calculated the numbers and reported our very scientifically precise data to a national group that was tracking the migration patterns.

The monarch butterfly migration is yet another one of those astounding, unexplainable stories of nature. 

• Did you know that monarch butterflies are the only insect to migrate up to 2500 milesto get out of the cold weather to hibernate?  And where they go to spend the winter is based upon where they started out, their homeland.  Monarchs that live east of the Rocky Mountains migrate to the oyamel fire trees in Mexico.  Those that live west of the Rocky Mountains will hibernate in the eucalyptus trees around Pacific Grove, California.
• Did you know that only 25% of the monarchs migrate and they make the round trip only once?   There are four generations of Monarch butterflies each year.  The first three generations only have a six week lifespan.  However, the fourth generation lives for six to eight months allowing them time to go south for the winter, hibernate, then start a new generation in the spring.  How do they know where to go when none of them have been there before?!
• Did you know that female monarchs lay several hundred eggs during their short short lifetime in the spring?  The butterfly larvae eat only milkweed and need it to survive.  Conservationists are not only trying to preserve the supply of milkweed despite more and more road and housing developments, they’re also conscious of preserving the monarchs’ favorite trees in the overwintering areas.

Monarchs usually hibernate in the same trees every year.

The following web sites provide a lot of great information about monarchs as well as up to date info about the monarch butterfly migration to Mexico and California.  MonarchButterflyJourneyNorth.com has up to date information from monarch-spotters all over the country as well as monarch butterfly maps.  Additional monarch information can be found on MonarchButterflyUSA.com. 

So, take some time to relax a few minutes, maybe spend a little time with your children or grandchildren, and watch for monarchs.   What a wonderful learning experience for children – you may want to line up and start counting!  Introduce and teach the children about monarchs when you visit these web sites together.  Here are also some wonderful books for children’s gift ideas.  Be sure to check out the monarch books for grown ups, too!

• Monarch Butterfly (paperback, Grades 2 – 4)
• Monarch Magic:  Butterfly Activities & Nature Discoveries (paperback, Grades 3 – 6)
• Gotta Go!  Gotta Go!  (paperback, Age 4-8)

 

And you may even need a beautiful Monarch Butterfly Child’s Costume for Halloween!

Remember, take a few minutes to enjoy your fall garden and watch the monarchs go by.