This is a magical time of the year in our Eastern United States, and more importantly right here in Cumberland County.  Known as the “wanderer”, Monarch butterflies are making an incredible fall migration to a place they have never been before.  Migration generally starts in September and October in our area, and it can take up to two months to complete their journey.  Cool weather, shorter days, and the dying off of Milkweed (the larval food source), are all environmental cues that help Monarchs know that it’s time to travel south for the winter.

Adult Monarchs, with their two pair of brilliant orange-reddish wings, featuring black veins and white spots, normally have a lifespan of about 6 weeks.  The fifth or “winter generation” has a unique longevity.  This generation of monarchs, which can live up to nine months, needs to consume enough nectar to fill their fat reserves.  It provides them with enough energy to make their long journey and to last them through the long winter months.

The annual migration of Eastern North America’s Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) is a unique and amazing phenomenon. The Monarch is the only butterfly known to make a two-way migration as birds do.  With the sun as its cue, and the Earth’s magnetic field, Monarchs use a combination of air currents and thermals to travel long distances to their winter home, as far as 3,000 miles away. Monarchs fly mostly along the coast down through the Carolinas, by Florida, to Mexico.  Some Monarchs have been noted to fly as far as 265 miles in one day. 

Monarchs east of the Rockies have a second home in the Sierra Madre Mountains of Mexico.  Hundreds of millions of butterflies migrate from the United States and Canada to their over-wintering colonies in the mountains of Michoacan, in Central Mexico.  They are genetically programmed to go to the right place at the right time.  Here they accumulate in incredible numbers, hanging dormant on Oyamel fir trees, except for an hour or two of flight at mid-day from November to March.   The Monarchs remain in Mexico until the end of March, when they begin their return migration.  They court and mate and the females fly back to the Southern U.S. and lay hundreds of eggs, which will begin the next series of generations that takes place during the spring and summer months.   In fact, most of the butterflies completing the flight back to the Bayshore Region are the great-great-great grandchildren of those who migrated to Mexico.

Monarchs go through a magical transformation or metamorphosis during their life cycle.  That life cycle begins when the female monarch lays her eggs one at a time on a milkweed plant.  The eggs hatch about four days after they are laid.  The larvae then feed on milkweed and shed their skin about five times and are about 2 inches long before transforming again.The caterpillar (larvae) then transforms into the pupa, or chrysalis stage.  It can take as few as five days for a monarch butterfly to emerge.  As the monarch emerges from the chrysalis, it pumps body fluids into its wings so it can fly.

These thermal warriors help us to remember that all things are interconnected, they instill an interest in Science, they inspire us, and yes, they are the bridge that connects the United States to Mexico.  We call them Monarchs, the Mexicans call them Mariposa, and they are most definitely, Magical.

In Mexico, several organizations are working hard to dissuade farmers and illegal loggers from cutting down the trees that the Monarch butterflies call their over-wintering home.    It is important that we work to preserve natural areas that exist and to restore other areas that were once habitat for wildlife.  You can begin by planting a butterfly garden in your yard where you will be able to watch Monarchs and many other species. For more information on how to attract Monarchs, please contact Citizens United at forrivers at aol.com.

CU on the River!