Why haven't our Monarchs arrived yet??

Hi, everyone!

I have been lurking and reading about everyone's monarch raising and finding eggs and so on...and I have been wondering all the time when our Monarchs will come up to the Ohio River Valley, or if they ever will?!

So, I ask----Is it the dry weather? Or the wet weather? Or the heat? Or my nectar flowers? Or my choice of milkweed varieties?

I have had one or two visiting thus far, but the migration north seems to be so slooowww to our place ....So does anyone up in the midwest or east have lots of Monarchs now? I would love to hear some reports from northerners!

And so I googled and I found this explanation showing diagrams and maps of how the monarch migration north takes place and I thought may be some others up here would find it interesting...It doesn't answer all my questions, but it does give some insight.

About the annual cycle of the Monarch: http://www.monarchlab.org/biology/gen1.aspx

Any thoughts????

(This is a pic from last year)

Judy - Wow! That is rather fascinating! Being in Florida, I do see more in the early Spring and late Fall into the Winter months. We seem to have them year round in smaller numbers except during the migrating season.

I really don;t have many either, not like last year. I have had 2 come lay eggs but nothing else. I have to go rescue all the eggs in the garden before something happens to them.

Flutter

I suspect that the Monarchs probably do vary their migration patterns in respect to some kinds of weather patterns, but of course I can't swear to that. I hope you get some SOON!

Our monarchs have been here a month or so. We have hatched out and let at least 10 go though too which helps maintain the population around here I would think.