Monarch Butterfly departure continues from overwintering sites in Mexico

[Donkees]

"The massive departure of our exceptional monarch butterflies keeps on day by day," Estela Romero writes in her latest report for Journey North.

Estela Romero is an environmental educator whose work is made possible by the Monarch Butterfly Fund and Monarchs Across Georgia.

Monarch departure continues as the calendar turns to March
Mar 2, 2026
Monarchs continue to head north from overwintering sites in Mexico, with Estela Romero estimating that less than half the monarchs that inhabited El Rosario Sanctuary remain there as of the start of this week.

[debm55]

1. Thank is absolutely beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing, donkees.

[Donkees]

2. And the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are now moving up the east coast

[debm55]

3. Thank you my friend.

[efhmc]

4. Where are they headed?

[Donkees]

5. Migration Map:

Eastern North American Population
Overwintering in Mexico
The eastern population of North America’s monarchs overwinters in the same 11 to 12 mountain areas in the States of Mexico and Michoacan from October to late March.

Monarchs roost for the winter in oyamel fir forests at an elevation of 2,400 to 3,600 meters (nearly 2 miles above sea level). The mountain hillsides of oyamel forest provide an ideal microclimate for the butterflies. Here temperatures range from 0 to 15 degrees Celsius. If the temperature is lower, the monarchs will be forced to use their fat reserves. The humidity in the oyamel forest assures the monarchs won’t dry out allowing them to conserve their energy.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/pollinators/Monarch_Butterfly/migration/index.shtml

[efhmc]

6. Our nature park here in the middle of Texas gets loads of them on the native purple prairie verbena.