Table of Contents
What is the monarch butterfly migration route?
Each fall, North American monarchs travel from their summer breeding grounds to overwintering locations. East of the Rocky Mountains, monarchs travel up to an astonishing 3,000 miles to central Mexico, whereas the shorter western migration is to the California coast.
MONARCH WATCH TAGGING METHOD The tag is placed over the large, mitten shaped cell (discal cell) on the underside of the hindwing of the monarch. This tagging method places the tag close to the center of lift and gravity for the butterfly so as to not interfere with flight or otherwise harm the butterfly.
Do monarchs have 4 wings?
All butterflies have four wings. All butterflies have four wings. Take the wings below and slide them into place on this monarch butterfly.
How do monarchs know where to go?
Using environmental cues, the monarchs know when it is time to travel south for the winter. Monarchs use a combination of air currents and thermals to travel long distances. Some fly as far as 3,000 miles to reach their winter home!
What triggers monarch migration?
Three environmental factors influence these changes in the migrant generation of monarchs: the length of daylight, the fluctuation of temperatures, and the quality of milkweed plants. In combination, these three environmental triggers tell monarchs it’s time to take to the skies.
How do you track monarch butterflies?
Tagging and recovery data provide information on the dynamics of the migration. Volunteers order circular, lightweight stickers that they place carefully on the wings of monarchs. A unique ID number on each tag is used to keep track of information associated with each butterfly, tagger, and recovery.
How many tag butterflies he could capture?
Ebright lost interest in tagging butterflies because it was tedious and there was not much feedback. He could capture only two butterflies.
Does a butterfly have six legs?
Butterflies have six jointed legs, a pair of antennae and three body parts called a head, thorax (chest), and abdomen (tail end). The four wings and the six legs of a butterfly are attached to its thorax. Butterflies transform themselves four times in their life.
Do monarchs fly all the way to Mexico?
Flying up to 2,500 miles from the US and Canada where they breed, all the way down to the forests in central Mexico where they hibernate, the monarch’s migratory pattern is the most highly evolved of any known species of their kind.