With orange winds laced with black lines and bordered with white dots, the monarch butterfly is one of nature’s most beautiful creatures. Each year they travel three thousand miles from Canada and the US down south to Mexico. If you vacation in Mexico from November through March, then you should visit a monarch butterfly sanctuary. There, you can see up close the monarch butterflies as they nestle amongst trees and flutter high in the sky creating a vision of orange and black that is simply breathtaking. Read below to learn more about the monarch butterfly and its annual journey to Mexico.
Monarch Butterfly Migration
In the middle of November is when the monarch butterfly begins to arrive in Mexico. The butterflies cozy up in the forests in the state of Michoacan, which isn’t very far from Mexico City. The butterflies travel in colonies of up to twenty million insects. Together, they travel up to one hundred and twenty miles each day. The migration speed depends on the wind and weather conditions. The butterflies will gain speed when they catch a warm air current and don’t have to flap their wings until the currents begin to wind down. As a result, the butterflies are able to conserve their energy, which allows them to travel further riding the currents. The butterflies only travel during daylight and they rest and recuperate at night.
Monarchs Arrival in Mexico
Once the monarchs arrive in Mexico, they will begin to snuggle up together on the trunks of trees. There, they will stay for the winter months. When daylight comes, the butterflies will fly up from the trees and flutter around, because they love the warmth of the sun. Once it starts cooling down in the evening, the butterflies will head back to the safety and warmth of the tree trunks so they can rest. The best time to see the monarch butterflies in Mexico is the latter part of January all the way to March. Before January the butterflies don’t flutter as much due to the cold weather.
Monarch Butterfly
The monarch butterfly is native to the Northern American tropics. An adult butterfly has a wingspan of approximately 4.5 inches across, and they only weigh about 1 gram. An average adult monarch butterfly will only live a few weeks. However, they can breed a very special butterfly generation that will be born during the end of summer. These special butterflies will live up to nine months, but they won’t breed. Instead, these special butterflies will start storing up the nectar, so that they have the fuel to assist them on their migration to the south. Their main food source is milkweed plants, and this has a toxic chemical that many species can’t tolerate. However, the monarch butterfly is able to ingest the milkweed and it serves to provide a protective shield against predators, too.
Monarch Butterfly
Mexico Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary
A visit to a monarch butterfly sanctuary is a must-do on your next vacation to Mexico! Watching thousands of colorful butterflies flutter around you in person is simply breathtaking. The two months that are very popular are January and February. The butterfly sanctuaries usually open at 6 in the morning and they close at 6 in the evening. If you want to avoid large crowds, then you should visit the sanctuary during the week instead of the weekend. El Rosario and the Sierra Chincua are two of the most popular butterfly sanctuaries. Likewise, the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve is a protected area with more than 560 miles that was recognized by UNESCO in 2008 as a World Heritage Site.
Monarch Butterfly – The Journey to Mexico
Over 400 eggs will be laid by each of the female monarch butterflies before they start their journey. The female monarch will collect nectar, so they will have plenty of energy for the journey. Some of the butterflies will start fluttering in March as they hope they will be able to catch a warm air current. The warm air current will assist the butterflies in crossing the border to reach the US and Canada. The new butterflies will know where to fly instinctively.
Would you like to see the monarch butterfly in person? You can do so by booking a vacation to Mexico. You can call Today Getaway at 1-866-435-8007 or 619-558-0432, which is a reputable online travel agency. They provide vacation packages to Mexico at top resorts such as with the Villa Group. The award-winning resort provider has implemented stringent health and safety measures to protect guests from the COVID virus. Ready to pamper yourself with a getaway to Mexico? If so, call Today Getaway and ask about their current promotions and all-inclusive travel deals.