It's Official: Arrival at Mexican Sanctuaries Confirmed! October 12, 2001 After scattered reports since September 10, the certain arrival of monarchs at the Mexican sanctuaries was announced last week by three independent sources. According to Eligio Garcia, biologistat the monarch reserve, ?El día 12 de octubre el Ing. Juan Velázquez, que trabaja con nosotros en la Reserva de la Biosfera Mariposa Monarca, observo dos mariposas en el vivero de la Sierra Chincua.? (The 12th of October, the engineer Juan Velazquez, who works with us in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, observed 2 butterflies in the tree nursery of Sierra Chincua.) The Finish Line The Mountains of Mexico's Transvolcanic Belt. Similarly, Sra. Estella Romero and Sr. German Medina (who live in Angangueo and help with the Symbolic Migration) each saw their first monarchs last week, as did more children in the mountain schools. At the moment the children at Escuela Secondaria Rancho Escondida were honoring the Mexican flag they saw 6 butterflies fly by. They all screamed with surprise! Children at Escuela Presidente Calles say they observed butterflies in their gardens. Some of these children live beside the El Rosario sanctuary and say the number of butterflies increases there each day. Sra. Romero wrote, ?I personally saw a butterfly flying in Angangueo at mid-day on Saturday, October 13. I was almost paralyzed with surprise after watching for so long! I had gone up to the El Rosario Sanctuary with my little brother Fernando last Tuesday, October 9 to look, but we didn?t see any butterflies and the people who work there hadn?t either. Over the weekend, German Medina saw a small group flying by the lower part of town, toward El Rosario sanctuary. So finally, in short, we now can assure that butterflies are here!? Escuela Issac Arriaga in the center of Angangueo Students at Escuela La Salud saying hello to their northern friends Benito Juarez student and father walking home with her Symbolic Monach We asked for Dr. Calvert?s interpretation of the arrivals reported earlier. Here are his comments: Thoughts About Early Reports of Arrivals in Mexico Monarchs from across eastern North America funnel to Mexico's Transvolcanic Belt--and cluster on only 12 mountaintops on the planet. (The location of the overwintering sites are indicated by red triangles on the maps below.) Life in the Sanctuary Region Children and Families Share Their Stories Copyright 2001 Journey North. All Rights Reserved. Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to our feedback form