Millions of monarch butterflies migrate to a reserve in Michoacan state, Mexico

Every year in late autumn, visitors to the state of Michoacan, central Mexico, will witness an extremely interesting natural spectacle when millions of monarch butterflies travel a journey of more than 4,000 km, from the northern United States and Canada to the reserve in this state to avoid the cold.

The colorful butterflies fly densely in the sky and cover the ground, creating a spectacular scene. The Mexican government has also taken many measures to protect this butterfly species in the context of climate change that is threatening global biodiversity.

Photo: USA Today

This is the world's largest insect migration. The monarch butterfly's winter migration is considered one of the most fascinating mysteries of nature. The dense presence of monarch butterflies has turned the Michoacan forest reserve into a unique butterfly paradise in Mexico, attracting the attention of many tourists.

“It was unbelievable. It was a very vivid feeling of nature, the forest, the fragrant feeling like the flowers of the monarch butterfly. It was a very special feeling. You can hardly describe it. It was unbelievable, unbelievable to be here,” said a tourist.

The monarch butterfly migration season is also a major source of tourism revenue for local communities in Michoacan. However, in recent years, due to climate change, farmers have used pesticides and herbicides, which have inadvertently killed most of the butterfly larvae, causing the number of monarch butterflies migrating to protected forests in Mexico to gradually decrease. According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the number of migrating monarch butterflies this year has decreased by 26% compared to the previous year.

Currently, the local government of Mexico is trying to plant many different flowers with different colors to welcome the butterflies, and at the same time, it is imposing many fines for those who intentionally kill the monarch butterflies in the hope of keeping these butterflies longer.

“The social distancing measures have not only helped restore the ecosystem in general, but also helped the monarch butterfly population gradually recover in their hibernation sites,” said Amado Fernandez, director of the forest reserve in Michoacan. “In addition, planting more flowering trees and limiting tourism activities also help protect the monarch butterfly from the challenges of climate change or human impacts.”

The protected forests of Michoacan are now a world heritage site, known as the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, and are protected by the Mexican Government by being listed as an ecological reserve.

According to VOV