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We hope you enjoy this interactive map which shows the amazing migrations of monarch butterflies. You can see where they fly, the urgent threats they are facing, and how your support is expanding innovative solutions to help monarchs and other butterflies survive.
- 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.
Jul 30, 2021 · The monarch migration map (above) explains how these butterflies complete their annual journey. Courtesy Jenny Miner. A monarch caterpillar crawls across a milkweed leaf. The flight of the monarch butterfly may seem like a straightforward event, going south for winter, but it’s anything but simple.
Monarchs east of the Rockies migrate each year to the Transvolcanic mountains of central Mexico. Millions and millions of butterflies from the central and eastern Canadian provinces and the eastern and midwestern United States fly south to Mexico.
The North American monarchs begin their southern migration in September and October. Migratory monarchs originate in southern Canada and the northern United States, they travel thousands of kilometers to overwintering sites in central Mexico. The butterflies arrive at their roosting sites in November.
Nov 15, 2023 · The butterflies that spend the summers in the northern continental US and southern Canada start to migrate in early August whereas those living in more southern regions start later. In addition to temperature and vegetation changes, Monarch Butterflies also react to changes in the angle of sunlight.
People also ask
When do monarch butterflies migrate?
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The first generation of monarch butterflies begins their northward migration, flying from Mexico through the southern United States. They mate along the way and lay eggs on milkweed plants , starting the lifecycle anew for the next generation.
