4 January, 2019
The monarch butterfly is a very interesting insect due to its beauty and color, it goes through the well-known cycle of one of them; from egg to larva, then pupa and it finally develops its black and orange wings. This butterfly is one of a kind, as it goes on a long migration through the northern part of the American continent.
Monarch butterflies live in USA and Canada’s woods, however, due to the extreme temperatures during winter, this type of butterfly has evolved to make an annual migration from its origin to the south, they fly to some places in Mexico like Michoacan and Estado de Mexico and some other places in a lower scale.
The average weight of this colorful insect is only half a gram, it normally has a 24-day life span, however, when the temperature lowers, a special generation known as “Matusalén” is born. This generation has the extraordinary capability of having a longer life of around 9 months, it also has genetic information that will allow them to be stronger to follow the route to the south, that will be visited only once in their life time.
This route will take them around a month and 40, 000 kilometer of intense flight. This journey is totally worth it, so they can get to the Mexican woods with ideal conditions for them to spend the winter, the areas where they stay are around 2,300 to 3, 500 meters above sea level. These woods are their home from October to March, as they will enable the Monarch butterfly to settle and to mate.
Malva Travel invites you to come and witness this extraordinary event, the season officially starts on the second week of November, however, the best time to live this wonderful experience is on February and March.
More info: https://www.gob.mx/semarnat/acciones-y-programas/santuario-de-la-mariposa-monarca