El Rosario colony leaves visitors speechless
The fantastic monarch butterflies confirm once again their exceptional nature.
As the season's peak shows us now, stable climate conditions and a healthy canopy all around should have benefited a good overwintering phase for monarchs.
The El Rosario colony leaves us frozen and speechless.
El Rosario (19.5983512 -100.26909304) has unexpectedly turned into a gorgeous, large and fantastic concentrated phenomenon, choosing a spot slightly further north now to settle. The number of trees occupied in El Rosario is hard to estimate, since the colony seems to thicken a little more as it goes deeper into the woods. 100 trees? More? It's hard to calculate for an empirical eye.
Standing from left to right is a well-defined front wall of around 100 meters, going from a good-looking orange to a vibrant gold-brown-orange thick patch in its center. The core of the colony itself is simply gorgeous and unbelievable in concentration and numbers now.
Monarch activity in El Rosario Sanctuary is evidently more intense than that of Sierra Chincua, where the population keeps a little quieter.
Sierra Chincua colony (19.6734393 -100.2946588) maintains its wonderful concentration now, slowly waking up and creeping only a bit downhill northwards by around 100 meters. It seems that our fantastic monarchs could be looking for a fresher shelter in the woods, this being their very first move since their arrival and at the same time, a first signal in response to our local temperatures gradually increasing and surely a rather early preparation for departure later on.
Both El Rosario and Sierra Chincua reflect very little mortality, if any, and not really in sight. Mating does not seem to be occurring yet anywhere around, but perhaps beginning occasionally and not really in sight at this moment.
Cooling down of temperatures, rain and a hail storm today in México City’s surrounding mountain ranges could benefit monarchs and avoid sudden unexpected temperature increases at monarchs’ sites for at least a few following days.
Hurrahs and joy fill our atmosphere now as we locals and visitors will celebrate an unexpected great peak of the season at both Sierra Chincua and El Rosario, ancestral overwintering monarch refuge in México.
Estela Romero
Journey North
Angangueo, Michoacán, México.
Nuestras fantásticas Monarcas confirman una vez más su naturaleza exceptional.
La Colonia El Rosario nos deja mudos e inmóviles.
El Rosario (19.5983512 -100.26909304) se ha convertido inesperadamente en un fantástico fenómeno de concentración, escogiendo un lugar ligeramente más al norte para establecerse. El número de árboles ocupado en El Rosario podría ser difícil de calcular, pues la colonia parece engrosar un poco más a medida que se concentra un poco mas monte-adentro. 100 árboles? Más? Difícil de calcular para un ojo empírico.
La colonia se muestra como una pared frontal de tal vez unos 100 metros de ancho yendo de izquierda a derecha de un buen tono naranja a un centro color oro-café-naranja vibrantes, centro de la colonia simplemente maravilloso e increíble en concentración y números.
Las condiciones estables del clima y maleza saludable alrededor debe haber estado beneficiando una buena fase de hibernación para las Monarcas como nos lo muestra ahora el pico de la temporada.
La Colonia Sierra Chincua (19.6734393 -100.2946588) persevera manteniendo su hermosa concentración despertándose lentamente ahora y moviéndose ligeramente hacie el norte en unos 100 metros, lo que indica que nuestras fantásticas Monarcas podrían estar buscando un refugio más fresco cuesta abajo entre el monte y la maleza, siendo este su primer movimiento desde su llegada y al mismo tiempo, una primera señal en respuesta al cambio gradual de temperaturas seguramente una preparación temprana para su partida más tarde.
El movimiento es evidentemente más intenso que el de Sierra Chincua donde la población se mantiene un poco más quieta.
Tanto El Rosario como Sierra Chincua reflejan muy poca mortandad si acaso la hubiera, y no es evidente a simple vista.
No parece haber comenzado el apareamiento por ningún lado, sin embargo podría estar ocurriendo en forma ocasional y aún no a la vista por ahora.
Enfriamiento de temperaturas como una tormenta y granizo hoy en los alrededores montañosos en la Ciudad de México, podrían beneficiar y aplazar incrementos bruscos de temperatura en los sitios de las Monarcas por al menos los próximos días.
Estimada comunidad, el júbilo nos inunda mientras los residentes locales y los visitantes hemos de celebrar un inesperado gran pico de temporada tanto en Sierra Chincua como en El Rosario, refugio ancestral de invierno para las Monarcas en México.
Estela Romero is an environmental educator with Monarchs Across Georgia. Reporting from Angangueo, Michoacán, Estela Romero's work is made possible by funding from Monarchs Across Georgia and the Monarch Butterfly Fund. Estela Romero es educadora ambiental de Monarchs Across Georgia. Informando desde Angangueo, Michoacán, el trabajo de Estela Romero es posible gracias a la financiación de Monarchs Across Georgia y el Monarch Butterfly Fund.
Reporting from Pasadena
Gail Morris, Southwest Monarch Study coordinator, has received a report from Pasadena, California. Gail writes, "I know many people are wondering about the effect of the fires in the Los Angeles area on local pollinator and monarch habitats. This week we are grateful to Kristy Brauch for her time to reflect on the harrowing experience of the fire exploding nearby and how she still finds hope in the scars of loss and change all around her."
Here is Kristy's report from Pasadena, California:
I was the first neighborhood mandatorily evacuated in Pasadena less than an hour after the fire started in the lower canyon (Eaton Canyon) just two miles northeast of my house. I have weathered some very tough storms throughout California over my 50+ years of living here, but nothing can prepare a person for what we witnessed. The wind speed alone was enough for me to evacuate early, with power lines falling, palm tree branches flying and breaking windows and fences down. Within 2 hours of my evacuation, the private groups I posted that I had been evacuated to reached out to invite me to their place for refuge. I would closely watch a map report of live incidents for the next 24 hours, not sleeping even a minute. I soon recognized those very homes that were offered to me were lost in the fire. My house survived less than 1.5 miles from the southern burned homes near my daughters' past elementary school. The destruction is truly unbelievable and the aftermath will be years of recovery.
Because my home survived, I initially felt guilt that so many friends and community members I care about lost their homes. We have over 10,000 structures lost both in Pasadena and Altadena combined. We consider ourselves one community. The school districts are all one. Most of the lost were modest homes averaging 1,500 square feet or less. My house is less than 1,300 square feet. We are not rich like so many think of Los Angeles despite being only 10 miles from downtown. We are a small independent city of Pasadena and bordering unincorporated Altadena with mostly working-class families.
The environment surrounding the burn scar is very toxic. I left my house for two weeks to avoid the toxins in the air. The soil is covered in toxic ash and soot that continues to find its way indoors. The fire, so condensed with 100-year-old structures, electric vehicles, modern chemicals all burned in less than nine square miles.
The effects of fire in surrounding neighborhoods all the way to the sea will be long felt. I am struggling with this aspect. I have some training post-fire through the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Department in terms of soil, gardening and poultry, as well as firescaping. The nature of this fire has changed even what we knew before, so guidance will be to not grow food in the soil and use protection when outdoors. Use professional tests in new soil and for poultry and eggs. (Already a shortage!)
This concept has me concerned for the wildlife, which is the second part of your inquiry. California is no stranger to fire; we have plenty of fire in the mountains our community is nestled in. It is, in fact, called the WUI, the wild urban interface. We are no strangers to bears, mountain lions, bobcats, coyotes, raccoons and other wildlife entering the neighborhoods we live in from time to time. I do believe the larger animals and apex predators will rebound well. Many of us have noticed many bird species showing up in greater numbers since the fire looking for a place of refuge in our yards. I have raccoons here nightly when they would come on occasion before.
Resilience: I have some background knowledge from my scientific advisor Leif Richardson who taught me that bubble bees rebound exceptionally post-fire. It can take a couple of years, but he explained to me last summer while on an outing that many of the plants, especially milkweed, are post-fire superstars. Together we caught a lot of bumble bees on milkweeds in July 2024, including endangered species. I have witnessed fires in Malibu that I have been visually monitoring near overwinter sites for many years.
One of the first plants to rebound was native milkweed! I have a patch I have monitored in our new burn scar just above the houses. I now have an extra interest in monitoring these plants. Monarchs were present in July 2024 and below on the native milkweeds in the community garden about two miles south. Of course, all of the sightings ended when we entered September 2024 and into peak migration. Our milkweeds have been dormant, so monarchs would not be here when the fire broke out. Just maybe the milkweeds will be bigger and bountiful for the return of the few that are our hope. I know the bumble bees and other bees that nest underground should be ok. A beacon of hope popped up yesterday when I saw my first mourning cloak and two swallowtails ... a bit early!
Also of note, the large fires in Oregon some years back that caused smoke to travel all the way to our area of Los Angeles were raging at the time that monarchs would have been migrating through to California overwintering sites. While there were large areas of habitat destroyed along their route, monarchs flew through (or above, or around) the smoke-filled skies unaffected that year. Tags from Oregon made it to overwintering sites. Smoke does not appear to be a factor in a wild landscape fire. Our fire was almost all dense structures, so it was a little different, but it did not wipe out most of the habitat above the neighborhoods here. The lower canyon was the largest area of wild space and has burned before so we know California native plants do recover. Overall, this is good news.
As a glimmer of hope beyond these stories I have shared so far was a report sent to me by one of my team of boots-on-the-ground observers. I have been working with the Fletchers, who live in Ojai, for years hearing about their spottings. I think this area is under-documented. My team was lucky to visit the Fletchers in the fall for an all-day tour of areas they have spotted monarchs from September to January. In prior years I reported our work in scouting to Xerces. This is an ongoing effort and something we were hoping to find a monarch to tag at the time, but no luck. We will continue efforts in spring and currently zero reports from the Fletchers and their extra eyes are zero. However, the beacon is this:
On Jan. 12, less than a week after the fires in Los Angeles, Jennifer Fletcher reported to me the following sighting from her cousin. An adult monarch flying near the Los Angeles River close to downtown LA. 34°07'04.3"N 118°15'59.8”W.
It is going to be a tough year for monarchs in repopulating, but the hope is there. Now we just need some rain to get those milkweeds and flowers robust for the few that hold the future generations! Rest assured my team is diligently in search of them.
Gail Morris is the coordinator of the Southwest Monarch Study (www.swmonarchs.org). She is also a Monarch Watch conservation specialist, the vice president of the Central Arizona Butterfly Association and sits in several western working groups. The Western Monarch News is based on comments provided to Gail Morris. We hope to increase the number of sightings and therefore photos and comments entered into Journey North. We rely on the volunteers who communicate regularly with Gail and who agree to participate in our effort to increase awareness of the population of western monarchs. You can reach her at gail@swmonarchs.org
Symbolic Monarch Migration Project update: Nearly there!
By Susan Meyers, Symbolic Migration Project coordinator
More than 80% of the ambassadors have been delivered already! We expect all ambassadors to be delivered in Mexico this month.
During our visit to Mexico in the next weeks, we plan to retrieve the letters written by students there. One letter will be included in your spring return envelope for each ambassador sent.
Our goal is to mail all spring return envelopes by mid-March. This should ensure that you receive yours by the first week of April if not sooner.
To find your ambassador, use the search bar at the top right of the Symbolic Monarch Migration website. Enter your city, school or organization name. Questions? Contact symbolic-migration@eealliance.org.
The Symbolic Monarch Migration project is a partnership project between Journey North (a program of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Arboretum) and Monarchs Across Georgia (a committee of the nonprofit organization, the Environmental Education Alliance). Journey North hosts educational materials on its website. Monarchs Across Georgia administers the project including coordinating the exchange of symbolic butterflies among 2000+ classrooms in three countries, engaging a contract worker to provide lessons and deliver materials in Mexico, and raising funds for the project's continuation.
The Monarch Butterfly Fund continues to support our Mexico Book Project through their Small Grants program. Books purchased with grant funds supplement environmental education lessons facilitated through our Symbolic Monarch Migration project.
