[EJ711]

Friends,

I was sitting watching TV, when first I saw one Monarch butterfly, then a second, then a third. They were landing in the cypress tree outside my window. As a fourth flew by, the three already in the tree, opened their wings. More flew by, and each time those that were already in the tree opened their wings too. It was like they were signaling to the butterfly flying their location.

My husband went outside to watch the site, and he said he saw more over the trees in back of our house.

Anyone know about the migration of Monarch butterflies? They are the large orange ones, with black markings.

From the Prairie,

EJ

[SeptemberMorn]

All I know about the migration of the Monarch Butterfly is that it happens here in CA, too. It sure must be a sight!

[sunrise]

Thanks for sharing that. Sounds wonderful.

I think the Monarchs live in Mexico in the winter, so maybe they are passing through Kansas on their way to cold weather home. I have seen thousands of them coating Eucalyptus trees in Monterey, CA.

[bebop]

We use to get them when I lived in Kansas too. there were so many of them at a time! I loved watching them.

Here is a great site about monarchs, Ive linked everyone in to the migration info but there is tons more information on this site about them.

Up here, in Canada, they are considered threatened(or possibly endangered, i cant exactly remember) so you dont see very many of them.

[January]

When I was a teen, I was walking down a narrow dirt road. I came upon an area that was completely covered with yellow butterflies that had black markings. There were hundreds and hundreds of them, and all were fluttering their wings. They didn't seem in the least disturbed that I was in their midst. I stood there in majestic silence thinking how blessed I was to see something so wonderful.

When I was an adult, I was hiking in Canaan State Park. I rounded a bend and it looked that a tree, the bushes and grass were alive and pulsating. As I walked nearer, I saw dragonflies of every color. They clung to every available surface. There had to be thousands of them and it was the most remarkable thing I have ever seen in nature.

Jan

[EJ711]

How extraordinarily beautiful!!

[ECHOES]

http://www.monarchbutterflyusa.com/Migration.htm

http://www.thebutterflysite.com/biology.shtml

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/alien.../voyagers.html

Copy/paste was not permitted on the above sites. Here is one that did allow it: http://www.worldwildlife.org/monarch...earchen=google

"The Monarch butterfly is known by scientists as Danaus plexippus, which in Greek literally means "sleepy transformation." The name, which evokes the species' ability to hibernate and metamorphize, is actually inspired by the Greek myth of Danaus, in which the daughters of Danaus, king of Libya, flee Libya for Greece in order to avoid marrying their cousins. The long, migratory journey of the Monarch butterflies is reminiscent of the daughters' flight.
Adult Monarchs possess two pair of brilliant orange-reddish wings, featuring black veins and white spots along the edges. Their wingspan is about four inches, and they weigh less than half an ounce. Males, who possess distinguishing black dot (stigmata) along the veins of their wings, are slightly bigger than the females.

Each adult butterfly lives only about four to five weeks. But one of the many wonders of the Monarchs is the annual creation of a unique "Methuselah generation." As autumn approaches in their sites of migratory origin, a very special generation of butterflies is born. Unlike their parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, and great-great-grandparents -- all of whom had ephemeral lives measured only in weeks -- these migratory butterflies survive seven or eight months. In human terms, given our average life span of 75 years, this would be like having children who lived to be 525 years old!

This generation performs the incredible feat of flying from Canada and the United States to the center of Mexico -- after which they begin the northward journey again. Once they reach the United States, a kind of relay race begins: their short-lived offspring, with only four or five weeks to live, continue making the trek northward over several generations."

How lucky the monarch signalled to you, too, so you could watch!

[eskielover]

I had a beautiful huge green butterfly with the little brown eye markings on it's wings land on my deck railing the first day I was in my Ky home. He stayed there all day.....when evening came, he disappeared....but the next morning, he was back on my family room window. I went outside to look closer & he/she flew down onto the backyard grass. Just as he landed, a bird landed next to him. It took me a second to realize the bird was eying the butterfly. I ran like a crazy woman down the steps of my deck into the yard flinging my arms & yelling at the bird to leave my butterfly alone.

Luckily, I distracted the bird & the butterfly flew off into my woods hopefully to freedom & not into the beak of another bird. I never did see the butterfly after that day & I've never seen another one like it ever. I will post the photo in my gallery for anyone to look at.

Butterflys are free & very very beautiful....I love the colours of the monarchs.....but this green one was something I have never seen before.

Debbie

Eskielover,

looks like what you saw is what is known as a Luna moth, here is some info on them if your interested:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actias_luna

[eskielover]

Rainbowzz,

Thank you so much for the wonderful link.....the Luna Moth is exactly what I saw. Being a native Californian, this was the most awsome, beautiful (I thought was a butterfly at the time) insect I have ever seen. How fascinating to read that they only live for 7-10 days. I was hoping to see others....but that was the only one. I was amazed when it flew away into the woods on my farm.

I enjoyed learning about this beautiful moth The stages of their life is most fascinating.....thanks again for the link,
Debbie