WITH ITS SMALL BODY MASS, HOW DOES A MONARCH BUTTERFLY OBTAIN ENOUGH ENERGY TO MIGRATE 1800 MILES?

The energy is gathered from nectar, and the butterflies that make the trip, those born in the early fall, are able to convert nectar into fat. Those born in September know to tank up on nectar and their abdomens get really large. Unlike the other generations, these monarchs, he explained, have a little area of fatty tissue where the sugar of the nectar is converted into fat. They can live off this cushion in winter and need only water to rehydrate their bodies. Monarchs born in September or late august live seven or eight months, sometimes nine months too. Their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren live just a month. By the time you get to the great great grandchildren it puts us back to September again. The butterflies also feed while migrating