MEXICO: Monarch Majesty & Endemic Birding
TOUR FOCUS
BIRDS & WILDLIFE
SCHEDULED TOURS
TRIP LEADERS
TOUR COST
From: $3,350 (See details)
Cost is per person, double occupancy from Mexico City (MEX)
GROUP SIZE
4 - 8 Participants
AVAILABILITY
PRIVATE TOUR OPTION
This tour is available as a private trip for any size group. The tour cost will vary with the number of people and any custom requests.
TESTIMONIALS
Highlights of MEXICO: Monarch Majesty & Endemic Birding
Description of MEXICO: Monarch Majesty & Endemic Birding
A typical adult Monarch butterfly lives only about four to five weeks. But one of the many wonders of the Monarchs is the annual creation of a unique “Methuselah generation.” As autumn approaches in their sites of migratory origin, a very special generation of butterflies is born. Unlike their parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, and great-great-grandparents — all of whom had lives measured only in weeks — these migratory butterflies survive seven or eight months.
This generation performs the incredible feat of flying from Canada and the United States to winter in the center of Mexico — after which they begin their northward journey. Once they reach the United States, a kind of relay race begins: their short-lived offspring, with only four or five weeks to live, continue making the trek northward over several generations.
Why do they come here?
The Monarchs winter in only 12 locations within a 75 mile wide region. These areas are all over an elevation of 10,000 feet and have a healthy Oyamel fir forest. Although there are other areas with these two necessities for the Monarchs, no other locations have the specific micro-climate required for survival.
We are still learning about the Monarchs, however, we know these 12 locations offer the exact combination of daytime and nighttime temperatures to help them conserve needed energy. These areas also offer large tracts of forest in which the Monarchs move freely to make minor climate adjustments.
