Monarch Migration Update: March 25, 2005
Today's Report Includes:
- Monarch Migration Map and Data: This Season's First
- First Migrants Arriving in Texas! (But How do We Know?)
- Local or Migratory? Looking for Evidence
- New Butterfly or Old? Watching the Wings for Clues
- Discussion of CQ #6: What Food Will Monarchs Need Soon?
- Milkweed Map: Please Report Milkweed
- Monitor Monarch Habitat While You Wait
- Habitat Needs in the Breeding Season: Food, Water, Shelter, and Space
First Migrants Arriving in Texas! (But How do We Know?)
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03/22/05 San Antonio, TX (29.46 N, -98.52 W)
"Today our life science class was planting tropical milkweed in our butterfly garden, when I saw a monarch butterfly land on top of a milkweed. We went back into the classroom and watched out the window. She came back to our newly planted milkweed and started laying eggs," began Mary Beth Kennedy of Texas Military Institute.
03/22/05 Cypress, TX (29.99 N, -95.68 W)
"Wow! It was exciting to see the first adult Monarch this year. Our gardens are ready with nectar and Milkweed leaves. Our first female Monarch was observed laying eggs continuously for fifteen minutes before flying away. She appeared in good shaped but very faded in color. Could this be an overwintering Monarch? Or one from Mexico?"
New Butterfly or Old? Watching the Wings for Clues
By March, a monarch that has over-wintered in Mexico is about 7 months old, and its wings show its age. Butterfly wings become worn, tattered, and faded over time. The three monarchs pictured were captured in Texas in the spring. Look at the condition of each butterfly's wings, read "New Butterfly or Old?", and then try to answer Challenge Question #8:
- New
Butterfly or Old? Watching the Wings for Clues
Challenge Question #8
"Which wing-condition values do you think best match monarchs #1, #2, and #3? Which butterflies do you think were Texas monarchs, and which may have overwintered in Mexico? Explain your thinking."
(To respond to this question, please follow the instructions below.)
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| Which butterflies could be migrants from Mexico? | ||
Local or Migratory? Looking for Evidence
We've stumbled upon a question that even scientists can't answer yet! Here is a student worksheet to help you analyze the situation. Review each Texas observation. Do you think the monarch was from Mexico or Texas? Find facts that could support each interpretation (even if you believe one over the other).
Discussion of CQ#6: What Food Will Monarchs Need Soon?
Before the monarchs left Mexico we asked, "Aside from nectar, what food are monarchs about to need in great supply? Explain how you think food might be related to the timing of monarch migration."
"Milkweed!" said Iselin Middle School students in New Jersey. "Larvae eat only milkweed," they knew immediately. As for the timing of the migration, they said it "coincides with the blooming of the milkweed."
Milkweed is indeed the food monarchs pursue as they travel northward. Yet monarchs can migrate before milkweed blooms. They only need the milkweed's leaves. Do you know why?
- (If not, here's the answer spelled backwards: .srewolf eht morf ratcen ton, sevael eht deen eavral hcranom ehT)
Monitor Monarch Habitat While You Wait
Before the migration reaches you, watch how your local monarch habitat changes. Go outside and inspect the habitat regularly. Each time, predict when you think milkweed will emerge, when the first flowers will bloom, and when the first monarch will arrive.
Habitat Needs in the Breeding Season: Food, Water, Shelter, and Space
What do monarchs need during the breeding season? Consider the needs of adult monarchs, and the needs of their young. Have a brainstorm in your class today, and add new components of habitat as you discover them.
How to Respond to Today's Monarch Challenge Question
1. Address an e-mail message to: jn-challenge-monarch@learner.org
2. In the Subject Line of your message write: Challenge Question #8
3. In the body of your message, answer the question above.
The Next Monarch Migration Update Will Be Posted on April 1, 2005
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