Monarch butterflies making their way through North Florida

            Monarch Butterflies are starting to pass through our area so make sure to keep your eyes open for them.

As the chilly weather hits the northern United States and Canada every fall, monarch butterflies begin a migration south that takes them across North Florida.

Millions of monarchs east of the Rocky Mountains spend their winters at a specific forest in central Mexico—encompassing just 70 square miles and to get there, they use Florida’s river corridors and coastal barrier islands.

Groups like the Nature Conservancy have helped protect tens of thousands of acres across the Panhandle to make sure the monarchs have a safe trip.

They also tag some of the butterflies to see if they can follow the migration pattern.

Last year they tagged a few thousand monarchs in St. Marks.

They hear back about only a handful of their tags each year.

Anyone who observes migrating monarchs is asked to phone it in at 925-6121 or email the information at saintmarks@fws.gov.

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