Why do monarch butterflies migrate?
Show answer & explanation
Answer: Escaping cold winter weather
Escaping cold winter weather ✓ — Correct! Monarch butterflies can't survive freezing temperatures. Each fall, they migrate up to 3,000 miles from Canada/US to Mexico's mountains where it's warmer. Amazingly, the butterflies that return north are great-great-grandchildren—no individual makes the round trip. They navigate using the sun and Earth's magnetic field!
Following food sources — Wrong. While milkweed (their food) does die in winter, the main driver is temperature. They migrate to specific Mexican forests where temperatures stay mild and they can survive dormant.
They are avoiding predators — Wrong. Migration is primarily about temperature survival. In fact, migrating exposes them to many dangers. They migrate because staying north would mean certain death from freezing.
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