Monarchs can also be directly killed by insect-killing pesticides, if they happen to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. This fall, when you see the Monarchs flitting in the air, don't be deceived by their apparent carefree demeanor. They are in fact purposefully moving towards a faraway destination, guided by extraordinary homing instincts that still remain a mystery to scientists. No one fully understands why every fourth generation of eastern Monarchs undertake their extraordinary journey, at great peril, to winter in a very specific location. No one knows how they find their way to the same mountain retreats, year after year, to the very sites where their great-great grandparents spent the previous winter.
Monarchs are certainly among the most beautiful of nature's mysteries.
Photos courtesy of Monarch Watch .