Monarch. The queen of butterflies. (Víbora)

Scientific name: Danaus Plexippus.

Family: Nymphalidae

Order: lepidoptera

The Monarchs are probably the most famous and studied butterflies of the world.

They carry out an incredible massive migration every year from North America to California and above all to Mexico and back, crossing about 8000 kilometers.

They are the insects that carry out the longest and most massive migration.

The life cycle of the Monarchs has been highly resistant to the variable conditions of the time. Their life expectancy exceeds 9 months, up to 12 times more than other types of butterflies.

They are equipped with a highly sophisticated navigation system that checks the height of the sun and analyses the light that orients it or south.

This orientation is transmitted genetically, what allows them to know how to reach their reserves next year, as their predecessors had done.

The way the Monarchs travel causes admiration among the scientific community, it is surprising how they follow exactly the routes of their ancestors and return to the same tree from which they left without a guide or a compass…

Unlike other butterflies that fly flush with the ground, the Monarchs do it at 100 meters, taking advantage of the northern winds.

The butterflies cold blood allows them to adjust their temperature to the environment, conserving energy and saving fat.

Butterfly feeding

Another particularity of this butterfly is that in a larval state it feeds on Cottonwort (Asclepias Curassavica). Also called Adelfilla, Silk flower, cattle killer or Blood flower.

These bush plants are very poisonous, caterpillars of the Monarch make sure with this diet a formidable defense when they change to butterflies. If some predator is swallowed, it will experience a sudden acceleration of the heart rate, collapse and die.

Even though Monarchs are famous for their annual migration from Mexico and California to the north or Canada. They also manage in years with favorable winds to make transatlantic crossings, incredible prowess or to be treated as an insect.

There are quotes from Monarchs who came to the United Kingdom and even some populations of butterflies settled permanently in the Canary Islands, Azores and Madeira. In the Canary Islands inhabited in Tenerife, in the natural parks of the Strait and Los Alcornocales, too.

Thanks to the warm climate and the introduction of the Adelfillas (Asclepias Spp) originating from Central America during the 18^th century, the south of the Iberian Peninsula is a favorable place for the acclimatation of the species.

Today it counts with two stable populations in the province of Málaga and in Cádiz, besides it was introduced with quite success in the southwest of Asia and in Oceania.

In these new areas of distribution the butterfly does not migrate thanks to the stable climate and remains all year round in the same zones.

It does migrate in Central and North America, the vast majority migrates in Mexico divided into five sanctuaries at an altitude between 2000 and 3000 meters and closely linked to the Oyameles (Religious Abies), native and endemic fir from the central and southern mountains of Mexico.

The spectacle of observing the firs of about 50 meters of height completely taken by thousands of butterflies has no equal and is considered with all reason as one of the wonders of nature.

Despite their defenses and toxicity, Monarchs have predators, the most specialized are the Tunero Bagger (Icterus Parisorum), and the Dark Back Bagger (Icterus Abeillei). These birds feed selectively on chest muscles and abdominal fat and avoid toxic pelts.

Another predator is the Tiger-billed Hawk (Pheucticus Melanocephalus), which has enough resistance to poison and predates the whole butterflies.

In wintering areas, field mice of black ears (Peromiscus Melanotis) live underneath the colonies of butterflies and feed on those that die and fall to the ground.

The main parasite of the Monarchs is a Protozoan (Ophryocystis Elektroscirrha) widely distributed in North America and that affects the survival of the butterflys.

The Monarch butterfly was designated the national insect of Canada, and is also the state insect of Texas and Minnesota, and of the United States.

In Mexico, the arrival of the butterflies coincides with the celebration of the Day of the Dead. And the belief that the butterflies are the souls of deceased loved ones who return home is kept alive.