MEXICO—Wonderful news for the lovers of nature on Manitoulin Island; for the first time in history, there is proof that monarch butterflies depart Manitoulin Island in late August and fly south to overwintering sites about 250 km west of Mexico City.

Researchers from Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) and the Canadian Wildlife Federation (CWF) travelled to Manitoulin from August 24-28 to attach tiny ultralight, solar-powered BlūMorpho transmitters to the backs of adult monarch butterflies.  

These transmitters can be detected on smartphones on the Project Monarch app as the butterflies migrate south. Detections are then recorded to track the exact routes.

The Manitoulin-born Monarch butterfly known as MAN26021 reached her Mexico destination after 70 days of travel across the continent.

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