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MONARCH BUTTERFLY BIOSPHERE RESERVE

May 16, 2015 By Howard Kramer Leave a Comment

Mexico

The Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in Central Mexico may be the most amazing wildlife reserve on the planet, at least from an entymologyst’s point of view.  This area, which was not fully appreciated until just a few decades ago, is the primary destination for North America’s migrating butterflies, primarily the Monarch Butterfly.  It is estimated that nearly a billion of the beautiful insects spend at least some of each year here.

Butterfly migrations have been recognized in North America for many years, but it wasn’t until the 1970s that scientists figured out where they were going.  The vast majority of butterflies traveling from areas east of the Rocky Mountains made there annual trip down to a few nesting areas in sout-central Mexico.  These nesting sites became protected reserves in 1980.  In 2008 it was the first such insect reserve to be recognized as a world heritage site.

The monarch reserve is not just about butterflies.  The area does boast White Tailed Deer and Coyote as well as other, smaller mammals and many species of birds.  But the big star here is the Monarch Butterfly.  There are fourteen major colonies here, the largest number of major colonies in North America.  During the winter, anywhere from a hundred million to a billion monarchs nest here.  Five of these colonies are open to the public under careful supervision.

The Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve is a relatively small 560 square km, and the butterflies themselves take up a relatively small part of this space.  Located eighty miles west of Mexico City, the reserve is both accessible and incredibly popular.  It is open year-round.  As of this writing no visitor information was available.  Web: www.visitmexico.com/en/michoacan-where-monarch-butterflies-migrate (official tourism website of Mexico).

Filed Under: Game Park

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About Howard Kramer

Howard Kramer is the creator and author of The Complete Pilgrim. He first took an interest in religious sites in his early twenties when traveling through Italy after college. In the two decades since he has traveled to more than two dozen countries and almost every state, visiting and photographing hundreds of the world’s greatest churches, synagogues and other places of religious interest. Howard has been writing about religious sites for the better part of the last decade, and The Complete Pilgrim is a culmination of years of his work and passion.

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Welcome to The Complete Pilgrim(TM)! This site, created by Howard Kramer, is a combination travel blog and online guide to the world's greatest sites of religious interest (with some historic and recreational places thrown in for good measure). All written content has been originally researched and produced and is provided free for public research and enjoyment. Thank you for visiting!

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Where would you like to go?

Africa (North) Africa (Sub-Sahara) Arabia Armenia/Azerbaijan/Georgia Australia/Pacific Austria/Switzerland Balkans Belgium/Netherlands British Isles Canada Caribbean Central Asia China Czech Republic Egypt France Germany Greece Hungary/Romania/Bulgaria India (NE)/Nepal India (NW) India (South)/Sri Lanka Iran/Iraq Israel Italy/Malta Japan/Korea Latin America Mexico Palestine Poland/Lithuania Russia Scandinavia Southeast Asia Spain/Portugal Syria/Jordan/Lebanon Turkey/Cyprus Ukraine US-California US-Mid Atlantic US-Midwest US-New England US-New York US-Pacific Northwest US-South US-Southwest

Contact Us

Have a comment, a great photo or a religious site you'd like to nominate for the weekly spotlight? We would love to hear from you. Email us at hkramer@thecompletepilgrim.com.

About the Author

Howard Kramer is the creator and author of The Complete Pilgrim. He first took an interest in religious sites in his early twenties when traveling through Italy after college. In the two decades since he has traveled to more than two dozen countries and almost every state, visiting and photographing hundreds of the world’s greatest churches, synagogues and other places of religious interest. Howard has been writing about religious sites for the better part of the last decade, and The Complete Pilgrim is the culmination of years of his work and passion.

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