Date: 06/21/2009

Number: 1

Monarchs were late arriving to Duluth this year. I assumed that the cooler than normal weather was mostly responsible. I found my first eggs on June 5. Normally, after I find my first eggs it is very easy to find an abundance of eggs. That was not the case this year. The weather remained cooler than normal, and I had to do a lot of looking to find just a few eggs. However, after two warmer than normal days that situation changed drastically. Yesterday, I found approximately 50 eggs in less than 30 minutes. Today I found approximately 100 eggs in the same time. This made me think about how some people slow down the development of the various stages of metamorphosis by putting them into the refrigerator for a few days. I am wondering if the female monarch lays eggs at a much slower rate in cooler weather and speeds up laying eggs in the warmer weather.

Courtesy of Monarch Watch

Duluth, MN

Latitude: 47.1 Longitude: -91.9

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