Gliding ever so gently monarch butterflies make an amazing sight. Learn about these beautiful bugs. Insight into migratory patterns and biology.
Gliding ever so gently in the breeze the monarch butterfly, with it's up to four inch wing span that is brightly colored in orange with black stripe markings, makes quite an amazing sight. The monarch butterfly, which is a species of milkweed butterflies or the Danaidae family from the Lepidoptera order of moths and butterflies, is considered to be the most common of milkweed butterflies and the most beautiful. This fascinating creature can be found throughout North America. They are well known for their extensive migrations as the fall months arrive. Unable to survive in colder weather, this amazing insect will fly long distances of even as much as three thousand miles to reach warmer climates. It is not uncommon during the migration period to see thousands of monarch butterflies in areas of central Mexico and southern California flutter in masses in trees where they roost for the winter. Interestingly, the monarch will return to the same area and even the same tree each year. What makes this amazing is the fact that each butterfly only lives one year and thus it is the future generations that make the migration. The migrations of the monarch butterfly occur twice a year. During the colder months they move south to warmer climates, only to migrate north as the warmer months approach.
Although every aspect of the monarch butterflies life is interesting to observe, their mating rituals are one of the most fascinating. This can be observed in the warmer southern regions right before the monarch butterflies begin their northern migration. Monarch butterflies can easily be observed in meadows where milkweed grows or other flowers are present. During the mating period the male monarch butterflies will roost in the branches of trees or at the tips of tall weeds where sunshine is plentiful. Each time any species of butterfly approaches the male glides out to investigate. When he discovers a female monarch he will casually approach her bumping into the back of her abdomen. This is the beginning of a courtship dance that entails speedy chases that often take the two butterflies high into the air. If the female is receptive to the advances of the male, mating begins in mid air and continues for several hours. The fertilized eggs remain inside the female and are deposited one at a time on the leaves of the milkweed plant. After depositing her eggs the female will die within a few days. After about four days the eggs will hatch and the larvae begin feeding on the plant.
Interestingly, it is the milkweed plant that gives the monarch butterfly their coloration and protects them from predators. The milkweed plant contains certain toxins that are incorporated into the bodies of the larvae. These toxins give the adult butterflies their orange and black coloration that is believed to warn predators to stay away since the monarch would prove to be anything but a tasty meal. While the larvae feed on the milkweed leaves they will go through four molts prior to pupation. After a pupation period of close to two weeks, the adults emerge to begin the life cycle again. Monarch butterflies produce up to four broods of their species during the migration period and the warmer months spent in the northern regions. The last brood produces the adults that will migrate south for the winter, flying to the exact same locations inhabited by their predecessors.
