Dear Friends,
The monarch season continues with a noisy and cheerful atmosphere among villages and towns around the sanctuaries. It seems we all want to enjoy the last days being visited by people from our own country and from all over the world.
This weekend, early in this incredible sunny morning, I drove to El Rosario Sanctuary. Once way up into the colony, I realized how fast the earth turns dry due to the abrupt increase of temperatures in our region. The natural springs seemed less vigorous than in previous years, despite of the abundant rain we had last fall. The abundance of monarchs for tourists to admire around the center of the colony at the "Llano de los Conejos" is not the same this year. This might be a clear sign of their decrease in population.
Observing mating this time was of major interest for me. However, male and female monarchs seem to be a little bit lazy this year! I only saw rather scarce mating compared to what is expected by this time of the month. But, okay, we should be patient. Monarchs are indeed much wiser and must have calculated the exact moment to intensify their mating phase in order to announce their imminent leaving!
The colony has definitely dispersed now. Monarchs have moved a bit lower, clearly looking for a more humid area in the forest of "Las Balsitas" for relief from the intense sun and warm days upon them.
As I drove to the Sanctuary this morning, I encountered people travling by foot. Leonel (8), Jovany (7), and Paco (8), ran after my cheerful VW, thinking that I could be a tourist. They shouted loud inviting me to go to the Sanctuary as they do with all tourist cars coming. Soon as they realized it was me—recognizing me immediately as the face of Journey North, bringing their letters and symbolic Monarchs from their friends in the north.
"How are you doing? How is every thing going at the Sanctuaries?" I asked them.
To which they immediatly responded: "Oh Estela, the end of the season is coming. Our parents and older brothers and sisters are now preparing to leave home in some weeks to look for a job in the city."
"Do they stay permanently there without visiting you?" I asked.
"They come to visit the rest of the family once a month if they make an average amount of money, but every two months when their income is hardly covering a room's rent, transportation expenses and meals," they replied.
I hardly found a way to cheer them up; we joked to each other and then I continued my way. Only some meters after, I ran into a group of girls who were in hurry to arrive to their selling places around the sanctuary.
I immediatly stopped and offered a ride to them, having them jump into the car instantaneously. They were carrying their souvenir merchandise to sell to tourists. Rosa (35, mother), Arcelia, Ema, Juanita, Rubí said:
"We should try our best to sell as much as we can, in order to manage the best possible savings for the family, since, as every year after the season, the rest of the months are coming really difficult."
So friends, you see, we are all preparing to bid farewell to the monarchs. Our lives also change with their seasons.
Until next week,
Estela Romero
Local Reporter
Angangueo, Michocán, México
