Do butterflies migrate?
Yes, some butterflies do migrate. Many butterflies that spend the summer in temperate North America cannot survive the cold northern winters. Each year, as the weather becomes cooler, many butterflies can be found moving southward in groups of thousands. Cloudless Sulphurs, Mourning Cloaks, Question Marks, Queens and Monarchs are among them. Exactly where all of these butterflies go is not known. In early spring a reverse migration takes place. Butterflies from Mexico and the southern United States fly north. For most of these species the northward dispersals are gradual, but, in especially good years, one can see Painted Ladies, Cloudless Sulphurs or Clouded Skippers streaming northward along migratory routes. Monarchs are the most well known of migratory butterflies. We know that most of the Monarchs from west of the Rocky Mountains spend the winter along the California coast while those from central North America spend the winter in roosts in the mountains of central Mexico. Monarch
