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Insecta Inspecta World Website |
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Protection for
the amazing Monarch Butterfly in Mexico |
The Monarch Butterfly is the king of the insect world.
Even though
they are small creatures, they do phenomenal things. First, they develop
from tiny eggs, to a
caterpillar, become a
chrysalis,
and finally transform into a beautiful butterfly.
They
migrate, traveling great distances
to overwinter in a
temperate climate. Amazingly enough, not one butterfly makes the entire
round-trip journey. Winter butterflies are
sluggish and do not
reproduce. In spring they return to summer homes and breed along the way.
Their
offspring
return to the starting point. |
Milkweed Plants |
Danaus
plexippus is the scientific name for the Monarch
Butterflies. Related species in the family are found on all continents
except the polar regions, wherever
milkweed and related
plants are found. Milkweed plants also provide the Monarch with an
intriguing form of protection, since the milkweed juices assimilated by
the Monarch make it
poisonous
to predatory birds.
The beautiful orange color of the Monarch butterfly serves to teach
predators
that their intended meal might be toxic. |
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Not all milkweeds produce cardiac
glycosides, therefore not all Monarchs are poisonous. However, the warning
orange color serves to disguise poisonous from the non-toxic Monarch.
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Annual Migration |
Each
Autumn, thousands of Monarch Butterflies gather in southern Canada to
migrate south. Some of these butterflies travel over 2,900 kilometers,
just to overwinter in places such as Michoacan, Mexico in a small town
called Angangueo.
Other Monarch Butterflies also overwinter in Cuba, and Pacific Grove, as
well as Newark, California. In sanctuaries such as the one in Angangueo,
Michoacan in Mexico there are millions of these
gorgeous butterflies. |
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From morning until about 1:00 pm, they are most active. You can see them
flying around and almost
blocking
the sky. You will hear the fascinating sound of their wings
flapping.
During their long flight there is a great danger from predators. The
orange markings of their wings advertise the
unmistakable
fact that they might be a dangerous meal. |
What is happening to their
habitat? |
In Northern
Canada, the United States, and in Mexico, there are various organizations,
which protect Monarch Butterflies.
When Monarch Butterflies are in the
north, they are distributed
throughout a large terrain, but when they migrate south they
all stay in the same place.
In Mexico many of the trees that have been homes to these butterflies for
years are being
cut down. |
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The Monarch Butterfly population is decreasing. Humans
need to be much more appreciative of this
regal insect, the
beautiful but fragile Monarch Butterflies. |
Source:
Insecta Inspecta World (IIW) Website |
GLOSSARY |
even though: used as an intensifier
especially to indicate something unexpected (aún cuando)
caterpillar: a wormlike larva (oruga)
chrysalis: pupa of a butterfly enclosed in a cocoon
(crisálida)
to overwinter: to spend winter (para pasar el invierno)
sluggish: very slow (de muy lento desplazamiento)
offspring: progeny, descendants (crías)
milkweed: numerous plants having milky juice (plantas lechosas)
poisonous: venemous (venenosa) |
predators: animals that live by preying on other animals (a
los depredadores)
gorgeous: dazzlingly beautiful (deslumbrantes)
blocking: obstructing, covering (cubriendo)
flapping: up and down motion of the wings (batiendo)
unmistakable: clearly evident to the mind (inconfundible)
throughout: all the way through, from first to last (en toda
la extensión de)
cut down: cut with blades or mowers (talados)
regal: royal, imperial (real, imperial) |
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