Monarch butterflies – like lots of other animals – head south for the winter.

On their journey to Mexico, they may stop at one (often more) of over 200 butterfly preserves along the California coast line.

Pismo Beach Monarch Butterfly Grove is the largest in California.

Each year, between November and February, Monarch butterflies stop, rest, and socialize for the winter.
Some even overwinter in California, instead of heading further south to Mexico.

This year, over 22,000 butterflies have flown to Pismo Beach for a little winter vacay, and that’s great news! The butterfly population has been dwindling, with fewer than 2,000 visiting last year. So 22,000 this year?? That’s fantastic news!

But why should you care about Monarch butterflies?

Flowers.

Monarch butterflies are the pollinators for flowers.
Without pollen, flowers would not bloom.

When you come to the Butterfly Grove, be sure to bring binoculars or a good zoom lens on your camera.  The butterflies cluster high in the trees, and they’re not distinguishable by the human eye.

Take a look at this photo – can you tell where the butterfly clusters are?Neither can I.

This is what you want to see.

There is still a lot that scientists don’t know about the butterflies, but one thing they do know is that these little guys are very social!  

The scientists wanted to track the migration along California’s coast, so each preserve gently tagged the butterflies’ wings with an adhesive, colorful dot – this didn’t hurt the butterfly or affect its ability to fly.  Each preserve had a different color.

Then the scientists watched to see where the butterflies went, and … surprise … they went visiting all around the area!  The phrase, social butterfly, precisely describes these monarchs.  They were very social, indeed!

Let’s hope that this year was not an anomaly, and that next year will bring more Monarchs to California. 

The Pismo Beach butterfly grove is located at 400 South Dolliver Street, Pismo Beach.  It’s free and open from late October through February, but the best times to see the butterflies will be in the middle of this period – around the holidays.

If you’d like to see more about the Pismo Beach Monarch Butterfly Grove, click on this link to view my YouTube video.