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Did you know eastern monarch butterflies will fly between 2,000 to 3,000 miles to an overwintering location in South-Central Mexico? From New England to California, thanks for helping protect the pollinators that help keep our natural world healthy.
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Monarch butterfly migration is the phenomenon, mainly across North America, where the subspecies Danaus plexippus plexippus migrates each autumn to overwintering sites on the West Coast of California or mountainous sites in Central Mexico. Other populations from around the world perform minor migrations or none at all.
- Overwintering in Mexico
- Directional Aids
- Clustering in Colonies
- Protection of Oyamel Forest
The eastern population of North America’s monarchs overwinters in the same 11 to 12 mountain areas in the States of Mexico and Michoacan from October to late March. Monarchs roost for the winter in oyamel fir forests at an elevation of 2,400 to 3,600 meters (nearly 2 miles above sea level). The mountain hillsides of oyamel forest provide an ideal m...
Researchers are still investigating what directional aids monarchs use to find their overwintering location. It appears to be a combination of directional aids such as the magnetic pull of the earth and the position of the sun among others, not one in particular.
Monarchs cluster together to stay warm. Tens of thousands of monarchs can cluster on a single tree. Although monarchs alone weigh less than a gram, tens of thousands of them weigh a lot. Oyamel trees are generally able to support the clustering butterflies, but sometimes branches break.
Conservation of overwintering habitat is very important to the survival of monarchs. The Mexican Government recognized the importance of oyamel forests to monarch butterflies and created the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reservein 1986.
Mar 16, 2021 · The annual migration of the Eastern monarch butterfly is one of the most impressive there is. Flying up to 2,500 miles from the US and Canada where they breed, all the way down to the forests in central Mexico where they hibernate, the monarch’s migratory pattern is the most highly evolved of any known species of their kind. © WWF-US / Clay ...
The monarch's migration is driven by seasonal changes. Daylength and temperature changes influence the movement of the Monarch. In all the world, no butterflies migrate like the Monarchs of North America. They travel much farther than all other tropical butterflies, up to three thousand miles.
PEAK MIGRATION DATES. The following table provides a general guideline for when good numbers of monarchs should be observed at each latitude. These predictions are derived from reports to Monarch Watch, first-hand observations and the records of thousands of tagged butterflies that have been recovered over the years.
Mar 1, 2024 · The first arrivals of monarchs to their breeding range occur from February to June depending on your location. Let us know when you see your first adult migrating monarch. Report the number of monarchs observed at a single location.
