Monarchs

Last night my chapter of the Master Naturalists met at Carlos Avery to listen to a talk about monarch butterflies. A woman who is a master gardener came to tell us about her experiences with Monarchs in her yard in Anoka and also her mother's yard in Wadena, Minnesota. She enjoys going to local farmers markets to talk to children and adults about Monarch butterflies. Although I didn't learn much information that was new to me I enjoyed her enthusiasm and the sense of joy she derives from focusing on the orange butterflies. She brought a chrysalis that opened at the beginning of the meeting so we could watch the newly emerged female Monarch pump the liquid from her abdomen into her wings. Her wings expanded while her abdomen contracted. By the end of the meeting the butterfly wings were full sized but still wet. Someday I would love to travel to the Oyamel mountains near Mexico City to see where the Monarchs gather for the winter.