Page 111 - The Miracle of Migration in Animals

HARUN YAHYA

monarch groups meet mid-route as though they have received orders
from the same headquarters and continue their migration together.
The butterflies do not set off at just any time, but begin their
journey at the autumn equinox. After flying for two months, they
reach the warm forests in the south, where trees are covered by mil-
lions of monarch butterflies. Here the butterflies rest, taking no nour-
ishment for four months, from December to March, surviving on the
fat they have accumulated in their bodies, drinking only water.
Flowers that open in the spring are important for monarchs, and
after their four months of going without food, they drink nectar, and
store the energy they need for returning to North America, and mate
at the end of March, just before setting out on the journey. Just at the
equinox, when day and night are of equal length, the colony starts

flying northward. Completing their journey, they bring forth the next
generation to ensure the continuation of their species.
The newly-hatched caterpillars are the first generation of the
year and will live for approximately one and a half months, after
which come the second and third generations. With the arrival of the
fourth generation, the journey begins again. Again, this generation

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