Thanks once again to Blake School in Minneapolis for translating this report from Spanish. It was originally posted on April 17th, 1995.
To: Journey North From: Alfonso Alonso Mejia Date: April 14, 1995
News About the Monarchs Which Spent the Winter in Mexico
Hello to all. My name is Alfonso and I am writing to tell you how everything went for the butterflies this year in their hibernation areas in Mexico. As you remember, at the beginning of the hibernation period in November, December and January it was far hotter than it normally is in the mountains where the monarchs establish their colonies. This warm trend was the result of "el nino", a warm water current in the Pacific Ocean which affects weather patterns throughout western Latin America. As a result of this warming trend, the butterflies were far more active than usual and ended up seeking refuge in more humid areas such as the gorges and ravines. They prefer to spend the winter in colder, humid locations.
Throughout February, it was cloudy, windy and rained on several days. It almost never rains in these areas, so the butterflies were less active in February and thus conserved their energy for the migration northward. In March, the weather changed and it became quite warm. With this warming trend, the butterflies began to cluster together in large groups. This behavior signaled the beginning of the butterflies' remigration. With this, by the end of March most of the butterflies had left their hibernation sites and started their migration.
In conclusion, this was a favorable year for the butterflies. There were no major causes of mortality above those which occur normally. And as it was a good year for the butterflies, so was it a good year for the forest itself, where the butterflies establish their colonies. Last year we observed that the "oyamel" trees, which make up 95% of the monarch's forest habitat, produced large quantities of pollen. And as a result, I am happy to say that this year there are a large number of "oyamel" seeds. These seeds are being dispersed by wind and can be seen covering the forest floor. We hope that many of these seeds will germinate and establish themselves in the soil to produce a new generation of trees on which future butterflies will come to rest.