The best place to see butterflies is in their natural habitat. Many places in the world protect the habitat of the butterfly because that is what the butterflies need most to survive. Loss of habitat is their number one enemy.
Most butterflies hibernate during the winter but the Monarch butterfly migrates from Canada to Texas and Mexico. Canada is a great place to see many species of butterflies. The Mourning Cloak can be seen in late March. The Comma, the Question Mark, the Black Swallowtail, the Red Admiral, the Cabbage White, the Compton Tortoiseshell, the Milbert’s Tortoiseshell, the Spring Azure butterfly and others can all be seen during spring and summer in Ontario, Canada. Just keep your eyes open and enjoy the rebirth of spring.
The butterfly is not so delicate a creature as we may think. The Monarch butterfly migrates twenty five hundred miles and goes through astonishing achievements of survival on the way. Every year you can see these beautiful butterflies along their migration flight path between Canada and Mexico. One good location to see these marvelous creatures is their end destination point. Their flight ends at an isolated mountain range in the state of Michascan, Mexico. Most Monarch butterflies will die before they reach the central United States. Their offspring will complete the journey and then their grandchildren will make the return northward.
During the months of August through October you can visit the Monarch Butterfly Reserve that is two hundred and five kilometers from Mexico City. You will see thousands upon thousands of Monarchs here. What is interesting is to see tree branches actually break under the butterflies’ weight. No that’s a lot of butterflies. Also, around the town of Angangueo, Mexico you can see many species of butterflies, including the Monarch.
Back in Canada there is the Butterfly Conservatory in Niagara Falls, Ontario. Here the butterflies are protected and observed. Presqu’ile Provincial Park at Lake Ontario is another good butterfly vacation spot. This park is where an annual butterfly count is held during the summer. The park is on a peninsula that juts out into Lake Ontario. This location isolates it which gives protection to the butterflies. It also provides the habitat that the butterflies need to survive. Fifty different species have been observed here.
The Royal Botanic Gardens in the United Kingdom is home to about twenty eight species of butterflies. You can see the Large Skipper, the Peacock Butterfly, the Brimstones, the Speckled Woods, the Holly Blues, the Orange Tips, the Meadow Browns, the Purple Hairstreaks, the Gatekeepers, the Painted Ladies and the Clouded Yellows.
The Kern River Valley in California is home to one hundred and thirty five species of butterflies. This large number of species is due to specific vegetation that is found here. The vegetation communities are isolated and there is a high level of floral diversity in numerous habitats. There are plants here that are feeding preferences of both the larval and adult stage butterfly. So, if you want to vacation and see butterflies, go where their habitat is and you will see beautiful things.
