Kentucky Butterfly Makes It to Mexico

When I was a little kid, we had a mutt named Corky that used to wander off for, sometimes, days at a time.

But he would always come back, leaving us to wonder what had been occupying his time.

And I hear stories all the time about cats that wander hundreds and hundreds of miles from home only to eventually return. My sister had cats that used to do that. One of them, Roxie, even used to come back seemingly healthier than when she left. It's like she went to a spa or something.

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I get it. Mammals seem to have built-in homing devices.

But butterflies?

Yep, butterflies.

Every year, from August through October, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife and its conservation arm, Kentucky Wild, tag monarch butterflies in order to study their migratory patterns.

And I'm assuming that since they are specifically working with monarchs, it didn't come as a huge surprise when they learned that one the tagged last October in Perryville, Kentucky was found months later in Mexico, some 1600 miles away.

And apparently, this particular butterfly knew where to go as it flew to a butterfly preserve in Mihoacan.

Fish and Wildlife says that millions of monarch butterflies migrate to this preserve, El Rosario, every year. I had no idea.

I also had no idea that any insect had the kind of intestinal fortitude it almost certainly takes to flap its wings for 1600 miles. Surely there were rest stops along the way, right?

Bathroom breaks?

Anyway, National Geographic lays my consternation to rest by confirming that 1600 miles is a little more than HALF the distance monarch butterflies CAN migrate.

3000 miles anyone?

Yep, that's the figure from what I would consider a pretty good authority.

Well, I'm impressed. And when I shared this news with Heather, one of our account executives here, she thought it sounded like the subject of a good Pixar movie. And I think that's a GREAT idea.

And now that I know that they can travel such long distances, someone at Disney needs to get busy.

Pixar likes simple titles, so how about Wings? Do I get royalties?

Kentucky Creepy-Crawlies -- the Beautiful, the Weird, and the Ugly

I've run across some peculiar insects in Kentucky. Some beautiful, some NOT beautiful. And now I know what they all are.

Select Wildlife You Could Encounter in Kentucky

With all the bear stories--and occasional bobcat stories--that are popping up, maybe it's time we take a look at some of the wildlife you could encounter within these Kentucky borders. Some are harmless and some you want NO part of, in my opinion.

[SOURCE: WDRB-Louisville]

Filed Under: kentucky