Insect
Monarch Butterfly
Scientific name: Danaus plexippus
This is a monarch butterfly. It has bright orange and black wings!
Quick facts
- Size
- Wings: 9.4–10 cm (3.7–4.1 in)
- Food
- Plant eater
- Awake
- Active by day
- In the wild
- Vulnerable
- They need our help to stay safe.
All about the Monarch Butterfly
The monarch is a large orange-and-black butterfly from North America. Its caterpillars eat only milkweed. Every fall, eastern monarchs fly all the way to the mountains of central Mexico to spend the winter, while western monarchs spend it on the coast of California.
Fun facts
One star is easy, three stars are for big explorers.
- Easy
Monarch caterpillars eat only milkweed leaves.
- Medium
Monarchs keep the poison from the milkweed they ate as caterpillars, and their bright colors warn birds that they taste bad.
- Medium
Every fall, eastern monarchs fly south to the mountains of Mexico; some travel up to 4,800 kilometers (3,000 miles)!
- Hard
It takes four or five generations of monarchs to fly all the way back north in spring.
- Hard
Migrating monarchs are at risk of disappearing, so people are working together to protect them.
Where does it live?
The coloured places on the map show where the Monarch Butterfly lives in the wild.
- North America
What does the Monarch Butterfly eat?
- MilkweedFavourite food
- Nectar
Play and learn
Games with this animal and its friends.
