In mid-August, millions of monarch butterflies begin their fall migration from New York State. These adult monarchs are partway through their lifecycle and are in diapause, meaning their reproductive development is on pause. They will not complete development and begin to mate until next spring in Mexico. The Monarchs that leave New York to migrate south can live up to 9 months long. This is about eight times longer than their parents and grandparents that reproduced earlier in the summer. Most monarch butterflies live for about a month and lay eggs when they are only a few days old. The monarchs we see at this time of year are part of a super generation that's different than the previous three generations. The super monarchs live about eight times as long, typically emerging from their pupae in August or September and traveling to Mexico for the winter before starting the return journey back north beginning in March.
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