Monarch butterfly migrationMonarch butterfly migration is the phenomenon, mainly throughout North America, where the monarch subspecies Danaus plexippus plexippus migrates each autumn to overwintering sites near the west coast of California or mountainous sites in central Mexico. Other populations from around the world perform minor migrations or none at all. This massive movement of butterflies has been recognized as "one of the most spectacular natural phenomena in the world".
List of butterflies of North AmericaThis list contains links to lists with the common and scientific names of butterflies of North America north of Mexico.
Viceroy (butterfly)The viceroy (Limenitis archippus) is a North American butterfly. It was long thought to be a Batesian mimic of the monarch butterfly, but since the viceroy is also distasteful to predators, it is now considered a Müllerian mimic instead. The viceroy was named the state butterfly of Kentucky in 1990. DescriptionIts wings feature an orange and black pattern, and over most of its range it is a Müllerian mimic with the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus).
AsclepiasAsclepias is a genus of herbaceous, perennial, flowering plants known as milkweeds, named for their latex, a milky substance containing cardiac glycosides termed cardenolides, exuded where cells are damaged. Most species are toxic to humans and many other species, primarily due to the presence of cardenolides. However, as with many such plants, some species feed upon milkweed leaves or the nectar from their flowers.
OverwinteringOverwintering is the process by which some organisms pass through or wait out the winter season, or pass through that period of the year when "winter" conditions (cold or sub-zero temperatures, ice, snow, limited food supplies) make normal activity or even survival difficult or near impossible. In some cases "winter" is characterized not necessarily by cold but by dry conditions; passing through such periods could likewise be called overwintering.
DanainaeDanainae is a subfamily of the family Nymphalidae, the brush-footed butterflies. The group may be referred to as the Danaids (reflecting their previous rank as a family) or milkweed butterflies, as they often lay their eggs on various milkweeds on which their larvae (caterpillars) feed, though it also encompasses the clearwing butterflies (Ithomiini), and the Tellervini. Some 300 species of Danainae exist worldwide.
PollinatorA pollinator is an animal that moves pollen from the male anther of a flower to the female stigma of a flower. This helps to bring about fertilization of the ovules in the flower by the male gametes from the pollen grains. Insects are the major pollinators of most plants, and insect pollinators include all families of bees and most families of aculeate wasps; ants; many families of flies; many lepidopterans (both butterflies and moths); and many families of beetles.
NymphalidaeThe Nymphalidae are the largest family of butterflies, with more than 6,000 species distributed throughout most of the world. Belonging to the superfamily Papilionoidea, they are usually medium-sized to large butterflies. Most species have a reduced pair of forelegs and many hold their colourful wings flat when resting.
InstinctInstinct is the inherent inclination of a livingorganism towards a particular complex behaviour, containing innate (inborn) elements. The simplest example of an instinctive behaviour is a fixed action pattern (FAP), in which a very short to medium length sequence of actions, without variation, are carried out in response to a corresponding clearly defined stimulus. Every animal has instincts, including humans.
Müllerian mimicryMüllerian mimicry is a type of biological mimicry in which two or more well-defended species, often foul-tasting and sharing common predators, converge in appearance to mimic each other's honest warning signals.
SubfamilyA subfamily (Latin: subfamilia, plural subfamiliae) is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, positioned below family and above genus. It is used to classify groups of related genera within a family, helping organize the diversity of life more precisely. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with the suffix "-oideae", whereas zoological subfamily names end with "-inae".
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