Mariposa Monarch Sanctuary
El Rosario, Mexico
March 7, 2008
Every year, millions of Monarch butterflies make an incredible journey. They migrate from places in Canada and the Great Lakes, flying thousands of miles to southern Mexico. Their migration patterns depend on the wind; it carries them gently south in the months September and October.
When they arrive in the state of Michoacan, Mexico, they cluster together in the fir tree branches high in the mountains....and they wait. They sleep peacefully until spring, conserving their energy for mating and the difficult journey north to lay their eggs.
Carlos, our guide, shows us the differences in the wings of the
female and male butterflies.
Only the females survive. After mating, the male Monarchs have given all of their nourishment to the females and they die, dropping like raindrops to the forest floor.
The life cycle of the Monarch butterflies is
an amazing process.
In early March, the forest floor is carpeted with thousands of butterflies.
At this colony in El Rosario, Mexico, there were over twenty million butterflies clustered together in the fir trees for warmth.
More websites on the life of the Monarch butterfly