When spring arrives in South Dakota it brings warmer days, cherry blossoms, and colorful new beginnings. While cute baby rabbits and birds are to be expected in the next few months, did you know that there is another colorful, simply stunning natural phenomenon on the horizon? The arrival of monarch butterflies in South Dakota! Make your plans now to be outside as often as possible during South Dakota's annual monarch butterfly migration:
Taking place from March through June is the annual monarch butterfly migration, in which butterflies begin to move north following the cold winter months.
Each fall, butterflies instinctively head south for warmer temperatures, where they lay eggs on milkweed before dying. Come spring, these eggs hatch, and caterpillars emerge, soon transforming into beautiful butterflies and beginning the long journey north.
Since most butterflies migrate to southern California or Mexico, the journey north takes a long time, so the best time to see monarch butterflies in South Dakota is in late May.
To increase your chances of having more butterfly visitors this spring, experts recommend planting milkweed in your yard, as it has become increasingly difficult for the insects to find around South Dakota.
Milkweed can be found at your local garden store.
Once the butterflies begin to arrive around Mount Rushmore State, you can expect to see them until early September, when they begin to make the long trip south.
How do the butterflies know to migrate? This is a question that still baffles scientists, but one thing is for sure: it is truly a sight to see!
Monarch butterflies instinctively know when it is time to migrate based on cooling temperatures and the availability of blooming flowers - how this knowledge is passed from generation to generation we may never know.
By the way, make sure to have your camera handy, as you never know just what you will capture!
Craving even more beauty? Then discover one of South Dakota’s most majestic waterfalls – with no hiking necessary. Another wonderful place to explore if you want to spot monarch butterflies in South Dakota is this wildflower hike on Little Spearfish Trail. Find even more fantastic places to hike in SD by trying AllTrails+.
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