Monarch Butterflies

Ninety percent of all monarch butterflies migrate through Texas from September to November, peaking in mid-October. Walk our Monarch Butterfly Trail to see this beautiful insect.

Texas is an important state in monarch migration because it is situated between the principal breeding grounds in the north and the overwintering areas in Mexico. Monarchs funnel through Texas both in the fall and the spring.

During the fall, monarchs use two principal paths. One path is a 300-mile wide stretch from Wichita Falls to Eagle Pass. Monarchs enter the Texas portion of this flyway during the last days of September. By early November, most have passed through into Mexico.

In the Spring, they seek emerging milkweeds, they move through Texas laying eggs before dying. Their offspring continue heading north, leaving most of Texas behind, the first of several new generations of monarchs that re-populate the eastern half of the United States and southern Canada.

Learn more and report your trail sightings.

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