Date: 07/29/2017

Number: 4

We visited Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.  The Dune Climb and scenic outlooks 9 & 10 on the Pierce-Stocking scenic drive are traditionally fantastic places to find monarchs and milkweed. At the Dune Climb, I saw 2 brightly-colored males patrolling. A bright female was laying eggs on the large dune, as tourists excitedly ran down the dune beside her. What really caught my eye was a heavily worn female laying eggs on common milkweed on the dune and in milkweed patches around the parking lot. My short range camera lens wouldn't allow me to get a close-up of her. But her wings were so worn, with so much scale loss, that they nearly looked clear in places. She was an old girl, and looked more worn than some monarchs I have seen returning from Mexico. I was stunned.

We proceeded to the Pierce-Stocking drive, where I saw a monarch laying eggs at outlook point #10. I was chasing my kids, so I missed the opportunity to photograph her. We only had 45 minutes to visit, so I had no time to search the milkweed for eggs or larvae. But so far, what I have seen from adult monarch activity I observed is that this year is far better than last, and the activity in the Petoskey and Traverse City area this year is great. I saw monarchs while shopping in downtown Harbor Springs and Boyne City, along roadsides, at the dunes etc. Yeah!

Maple City, MI

Latitude: 45 Longitude: -85.9

Observed by: candy
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