Date: 04/09/2019

Number: 25

Today was an unusually hot day reaching into the mid-80's. It was sunny with light winds from the west. The monarchs took it in stride and they seemed to be everywhere, with a lot of females milkweed-seeking. I followed several of them during the day, watching as they found fresh milkweed to lay eggs. I needed to find shade under the trees at times to cool off and I noticed the monarchs as well flying in and out of the woodlands.

Some of the monarchs were very faded and tattery, so flew gently and slowly. The females nectared more often than usual, because of the hot weather. The milkweed flower crowns are beginning to bloom, so they provide another nectar source. The recent rain has helped more fresh milkweed to emerge ... which is good because the monarchs are still egg-laying.

Because the monarchs were so active, I had a lot of them fly past me or flutter nearby. In a surprising encounter, I had just stepped outside onto our front porch when a mated pair came helicoptering straight toward me over the front yard, only veering sideways at the last moment and sailing around the house (their normal singular flying brilliance quite hindered) …. I almost had to duck!

On a short drive to our post office (about 3 miles away), I saw a few monarchs in the ditches with wildflowers and flying past. Back home again, just a real joy to see so many of them. They seemed to enjoy encountering each other, even to gently air tussle a bit, then go along in separate directions. I think it is helpful for them to see other monarchs, because it reinforces that they are in a good spot to find milkweed and nectar plants, for males and females to find each other as well. Maybe they’re communicating about things when they have these encounters … very likely.

This is a photo of one of the beautiful female monarchs as she finds a good milkweed to lay her eggs on.

Montgomery, TX

Latitude: 30.4 Longitude: -95.8

Observed by: Kathy
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