They begin to appear in Pacific Grove, CA, in October. These golden winged butterflies called Monarchs travel up to 2500 miles to get to the coastal areas of California and Mexico to winter over in ancient eucalyptus and pine groves. Now, as the temperatures rise, they begin to leave their warm clusters to mate and then begin their northern migration again, leaving their eggs on milkweed plants along the way.

I took my children to see the butterflies a couple of times. It is a magical thing to see. They cluster so thickly on the trees in some areas that the tree looks like it is made of their satiny wings. Their mating ritual causes them to fall to the ground, so the areas where they gather are protected to save them from being trampled by crowds of people. They seem to be otherwise unaware of our presence while under the influence of their driven life cycle.

Technorati: butterflies, butterfly, butterfly box, butterfly gifts, California, eucalyptus trees, Pacific Grove