Monarchs
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Monarch Information:
Monarchs migrate over the course of 4 generations to their overwintering location in Mexico (3)!
Monarchs have aposematic coloration warning of their bitter taste caused by the cardenolide toxins in their diet of milkweed (6).
Very few predators can eat Monarch butterflies except the Black-headed grosbeak and Black-billed Orioles (7).
My Predators
My Favorite Foods
Milkweed (3)
Where I Live
North America (4)
Image Credits
Predator Photo Credits
Favorite Foods Photo Credit
Where I live Photo Credit
4) https://wisconsinpollinators.com/BU/BA_MonarchReturnToWI.aspx
My Life Cycle!
My History
The Monarch Butterfly has been cherished for centuries by both young old throughout North American countries(25).
In the USA, Schools have utilized Monarchs for educational purposes as they teach their youth about butterfly life cycles through raising monarch larva. Once raised, the butterflies were released to begin their migration, and the children left in wonder over the thought of such a vast migration ahead of such a small creature(25).
In Mexico, many bio-reserves have been set in place to protect the monarch overwintering sites. UNESCO, (United Nations, educational, Scientific, and Cultural, Organization) is an international program designed to protect natural and cultural sites. Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, home of the overwintering site of the Monarch butterfly in Mexico was declared in 2008 (26). However, the migration had been researched and protected for many years before this point (26). The first protection was implemented by José López Portillo in 1980 (26).
The Study of Behavior (8)
Developed to better understand the behavior of animals, Tinbergen in 1963 created 4 questions. The first 2 questions are called proximate questions as they ask about what the specific behavior is, and how it was started . In contrast, the 3rd and 4th questions are considered ultimate questions, asking about the purpose and evolution of the behavior.
Tinbergen's 4 Questions:
What is the mechanism that causes the behavior?
How does the behavior develop?
What is the function of the behavior?
How did the behavior evolve?
Image Credit- https://cindydyer.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/mating-monarchs-plumbago.jpg?w=584
Monarch Mating & Migration
Monarchs rely on their migration to find mates at certain times of the year, coupled with necessary seasonal host plants, to produce viable offspring (4). Each generation matters for a complete migration cycle!