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Symbolic Butterfly Migration Update: November 22, 2005


”Mexico or Bust!”
It’s time to celebrate! While you were playing after school today your butterflies started out on the long trip to their winter homes. All butterflies were carefully boxed and labeled for their long journey south. The special UPS shipping labels were put in place by our star shipping organizer, Ruthan Gagner and her son, Josh. Journey North’s chief symbolic monarch organizer, Beth Allen, oversaw their departure just as night was falling.

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You can be sure that the butterflies had lots of TLC in the hands of our driver again this year! Mike Towey, now a seasoned butterfly driver was again thrilled to help deliver the butterflies on their first leg of the journey to Mexico. (Mike was our UPS driver last year, too!)
Before leaving, Mike gave us UPS Tracking numbers, so you can follow the migration LIVE all the way to Mexico. But first--Mike had a question for you. Watch the video clip below, and look over the details of the travel itinerary that he left for you. See if you can answer Mike’s Challenge Question. But don't wait too long, the Butterflies could catch a tail wind!


Watch this video clip of
Challenge Question #1
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Challenge Question #1: (Text version):
"Exactly how many days, hours and minutes do you think it will take the butterflies to reach Angangueo, Mexico?"

Itinerary Clues:
The butterflies are traveling via UPS service. Here is the path they will take:

  • Start with the time the Butterflies were scanned in at Journey North staging grounds in Deephaven, MN--exactly 4:58 p.m. CST on Nov 22.
  • The boxes were then driven to the UPS Package Hub in Maple Grove, MN. From the UPS Package Hub in Maple Grove, the butterflies will be FLOWN to Louisville, KY
  • From Louisville, they will FLY to Houston, TX
  • From Houston they will FLY to Mexico
  • Upon arrival in Mexico City, they will go through Customs.
  • Finally they will be TRUCKED to Angangueo in Mexico.

As you figure your answer, this information about the workday in Mexico might be helpful: People generally come to work at 9 a.m.; they take a midday comida from 12 until 2, and return to work until about 7 p.m.

The 11 Butterfly Boxes going to Angangueo each have a tracking number.
Tracking numbers are:

  • 4309 697 563 3
  • 4309 697 562 4
  • 4309 697 567 9
  • 4309 697 571 3
  • 4309 697 568 8
  • 4309 697 565 1
  • 4309 697 566 0
  • 4309 697 570 4
  • 4309 697 564 2
  • 4309 697 569 7
  • 4584 929 714 4

To respond to this question, please follow these instructions.


Sharpen Your Pencils! How Many Butterflies?
We were buried in paper butterflies this year! While packing them up we wondered just how many you had sent us. So, we all went on camera to ask YOU the big question! Watch us on the video, read the hints below, and then see if you can answer:


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Watch us ask YOU
Challenge Question #2
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Challenge Question #2:
"How many Symbolic Butterflies do you think are flying to Mexico this year?"(same question as in video)

Clues: Here's what we do know about the estimated total number of Symbolic Butterflies so far:

  • One box of 2,569 b-flies weighs 18.0 pounds
  • There are 12 boxes total
  • The boxes’ weights are: 18.0 lbs, 30.0 lbs, 32.0 lbs, 29.0 lbs, 29.0 lbs, 32.0 lbs, 29.0 lbs, 33.0 lbs, 30.0 lbs, 29.0 lbs, 26.0 lbs, 20.0 lbs.

Good luck calculating!

To respond to this question, please follow these instructions. (And remember to show your work.)


"All Aboarrrd?!" Symbolic Migration Passenger List
Are all of your Symbolic Butterflies on board for Mexico?

IMPORTANT:
Lists are in alphabetical order BY THE ABBREVIATION. Please carefully check the lists for your school. If you sent butterflies to Journey North and you do not find your name on the list, don't be alarmed. Just follow these steps:

  1. LOOK AGAIN! Please check the list very, very carefully. When teachers write us in despair, we find that over 75% simply missed seeing their school.
    Sorry about spelling errors. With a plane to catch--and over 2,000 schools on board--we had to type quickly! We apologize in advance if your school's name is misspelled.
  2. If you've double-checked and you’re certain your name is not listed, please send comments and questions in our “feedback form:” (Include your school’s full name and address, and the number of butterflies you sent.)

Buen Viaje Mariposas!


Ready and Waiting in Mexico
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The peak Monarch Butterfly migration is completed and your Symbolic Butterflies now on their way to the school children in the sanctuary area.
One special box (box #12) is also on its way to Rocio Trevino, Founder of Correo Real in Coahuila, Mexico. Rocio wrote to say that the local children and teens who will be participating in the Symbolic Migration in Saltillo are eagerly waiting for some of your paper butterflies to arrive. They plan to take special care of them for the entire winter, she said, and send them back north in March.

Can you find Saltillo, Coahuila on a map?


People-to-people: Finding Solutions through MBSF
"We're Helping Monarchs"
through the MBSF
At the Journey North staging grounds it is clear that students all over North America want to help monarchs. The mail brought many, many envelopes labeled, “We’re Helping Monarchs!” and included money to be donated to the Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary Foundation(MBSF).
MBSF President Dr. Karen Oberhauser tells us that through the use of these donations we will finally address the needs of monarchs--as well as the needs of the people who own the land on which the butterflies overwinter.
As a private, people-to-people initiative, MBSF connects citizens of the United States and Canada who care about monarchs with the very people in Mexico who own the sanctuaries -- and on whose future the monarch depends.

More Butterflies Hit the Galleries!
Here’s a look at even more of your fantastic paper butterflies. We PROUDLY present the revised 2005 Art Galleries.
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Mark your Calendar! Here What's Next for Your Symbolic Butterflies:

COMING DECEMBER 9TH
Total number of Symbolic Butterflies revealed.
Total days, hours and minutes it took to reach Mexico revealed.
List of donors to the Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary Foundation proudly displayed.
Life in the sanctuary region: While your Butterflies are in the care of the Mexican people, read about life in the sanctuary region.

The FINAL Symbolic Monarch Migration Update Will be Posted on December 9, 2005.


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