In the late autumn, monarchs begin an amazi ng journey. They congregate by the thousands in Monterey and by the millions in Mexico. Most impressive about the monarch migration is that very few, if any, of the monarchs that migrate to the cool mountains of Mexico and the protected forests of the Monterey Peninsula, have ever been there before. Monarchs have developed multigenerational migration. The purpose of the migration is to survive the winter.
Monarchs freeze in very cold temperatures.
Before the onset of winter they migrate to mild climates where they huddle together, attached to trees like leaves. Wintering monarchs are relatively inactive. On cool days they hang from the trees like leaves. On warm, sunny days they drop from the trees like rain, flitting around, looking for food. To conserve energy they do not mate until the end of winter.