BUTTERFLIES AND MOTHS

Monarch, Danaus plexippus

Order: Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)

Size: Wingspan 3–4 1⁄2"

Habitat: Sunny, open fields as well as meadows and gardens; during migration, can be found in almost any environment

Range: Throughout the contiguous United States to north-central Mexico

The Monarch is a large, sturdy, long-lived butterfly best known for one of the most incredible migratory journeys of the animal kingdom—its yearly flight to Mexico, in which millions of this species gather in discrete, isolated locations. The uppersides of the wings are deep orange with wide, black stripes along the veins and black margins infused with a double row of white spots. Males have narrower black vein markings than females, as well as a small, dark “sex spot” near the base of each hindwing. The underside is marked as above, but the orange is paler. The body is black with white spots on the head and thorax, with thin, club-tipped antennae. The caterpillar is fat and smooth; is ringed with black, white, and yellow bands; and has black tentacles behind the head. The caterpillar eats leaves and flowers of milkweed. Adults feed on flower nectar. Both store toxins from milkweed that make them distasteful to predators. The adult male is shown.