This year, on August 22nd, we will recognize “National Flight of the Monarch Day,” a nationwide event to recognize the iconic monarch butterfly and draw attention to their amazing life cycles, fantastic migration, and the serious threats they face. The Monarch has been listed as a species of special concern both provincially and federally in Canada.
How many different Monarch life stages can you find right now? Egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, and butterfly? Submit your Monarch sightings to GBBR's iNaturalist project from August 22nd to 5:00pm on August 23rd will be entered into a draw to win a butterfly book collection prize pack. If you’re not already on iNaturalist, it takes less than one minute to get it set up on your phone or other device. Learn more about Monarch butterflies and iNaturalist.
Before Migration
All Monarchs start life as a tiny egg on a milkweed plant leaf. In one season, one adult, female Monarch butterfly will lay between 300-500 eggs in total. The eggs are stuck to the leaves with a glue like substance made in the butterfly's body. Each butterfly will lay all of her eggs in one patch of milkweed. Even though a large number of eggs will be laid on the leaves, only 1% of these will survive to adulthood.
After an egg is laid on the leaf, it will take only 3-4 days for the caterpillar inside to hatch. Monarch caterpillars feed only on milkweed plants! Milkweed sap (the white 'milk-like' substance contains a toxin. When the caterpillars feed on this, they become toxic to predators. This trait continues even when they reach the adult butterfly stage. This helps the monarchs protect themselves. If you’ve never seen these cute caterpillars they are hairless and are easily recognized by their yellow, white, and black stripes.
They certainly are very hungry caterpillars! They can eat a whole milkweed leaf in only 5 minutes! These little creatures will grow 2,700 times their size in two weeks. Then they are big enough to enter into their next stage of life...
When they're big enough it is time for a change and the caterpillars form a chrysalis. This will be their home for the next 8-15 days.
What’s going on inside the chrysalis? This is where the caterpillar turns into a butterfly. The caterpillar actually becomes a soupy liquid! The caterpillar's enzymes actually breakdown the caterpillar. Inside the caterpillar's cells is DNA (a set of building instructions that lives in all the caterpillars cells, and the cells of every living thing!). It is very complex, but the DNA tells the caterpillar's body to reassemble into a butterfly's body structure.
When this complex process is finished, a brand new Monarch butterfly will emerge from the chrysalis. It breaks free and adjust slowly, similar to the way other animals hatch from an egg. The Monarch will sit for sometime as it gathers strength and waits to test out its new wings.
After emerging, the Monarch will gather nectar as food from a variety of plants, including milkweed. Remember our blog on Pollination? Monarchs are pollinators! Eventually it will be time for the Monarch butterfly to begin one of the most epic migrations on planet earth!!
What is Migration?
Migration is when a group of animals (sometimes individually and sometimes together, like a flock of birds) moves with the seasons from one place to another. Animals often migrate to places where it is safer to raise young, where there is more food seasonally, or so they can live in warmer/cooler temperatures.
At this time of year, Monarchs make their way down to Mexico. They will fly there in one generation. This means the butterflies that make the fall migration fly the whole route and live for 8 months, compared to other times of the year when they live 3-5 weeks. This also means that the butterflies you see leaving here are the same ones that make it all the way to the Sierra Madre mountains, west of Mexico City. These butterflies will fly 4,000 km to reach their final destination! The butterflies that come back to Canada next summer are the great-great grandchildren of the ones who arrived in Mexico!
Scientists are still unsure how these insects know where to go. Do they use the sun like a map? Or do they have their own internal magnetic compass?
Monarch butterflies in Trouble
Monarch butterflies are not doing very well. Their population is declining and there are several reasons why including climate change, habitat loss, and pesticide use. There are simple ways we can all help the Monarch butterfly survive:
- Do not use pesticides and insecticides: these chemicals do not target just one species.
- Plant native species – for a local list see gbbr.ca/conservation-guides
- Let it grow! If you frequently mow large swaths of grass, try reducing the space you cut by a quarter or even half. You’ll be surprised at the wildflowers that pop up!
- Never purchase Monarch butterflies. There is overwhelming consensus that captive-bred Monarchs from commercial butterfly farms are not a healthy way to help the population.
- Avoid bringing Monarch chrysalis indoors to pupate; be sure to follow Safe Rearing Instructions from conservation organizations, and use an enclosed outdoor space.
- Limit your consumption of avocados and avocado oil, or buy FairTrade. Avocado demand is increasing illegal logging in Monarch overwintering habitat.
- Read GBBR's guide: Memengwanh, The Monarch Butterfly: A Guide for Eastern Georgian Bay.
- Share your knowledge with others, so be a Monarch champion! They need our help.
Activity: Butterfly Kites
Materials: A sheet of scrap paper, ruler, pencil, string or yarn, stapler and a hole punch.
1. First fold paper in half (like a hamburger not a hot dog).
2. Measure Point A 2.5 inches (6.4 cm) from the fold and make a small mark with you pencil here. Then mark a second point, Point B, 3.5 inches (8.9 cm) from the fold. Again, mark Point B with your pencil.
3. Decorate each half like a butterfly wing. You can decorate each half like a monarch butterfly's wings, or like another species of butterfly. Or, you can design your own butterfly!
4. Unfold the paper, take two corners and staple them at point A on both sides.
5. Punch a hole at point B and tie the long string to the kite.
6. Take your kite outside on a windy day and have FUN! 🦋🦋🦋
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