First Monarch
Report the FIRST monarch butterfly you see in the spring. The monarchs leave their overwintering sites in Mexico in March and the migration lasts until June.

Continue to report adult butterflies whenever you see them.

First Milkweed
Report the first milkweed to emerge in the spring. Watch carefully because the young shoots can be hard to detect. In many regions, monarchs arrive as soon as the first native milkweed emerges. The monarchs sometimes appear to get ahead of their milkweed food source, so the timing of these two events is of scientific interest.

First Monarch Egg
Report monarch eggs. They are usually found underneath young milkweed leaves, but may be along the stems or in budding leaves at the tip. If you can't spend a lot of time watching for the first butterfly, just watch for the first monarch eggs. You'll know monarchs have arrived in your region when you see their tiny eggs.

First Monarch Larva
Report the first monarch caterpillar you see. Monarch eggs hatch into larvae about 2-5 days after the eggs were laid. The two larvae in this picture show how much a caterpillar can grow in about two weeks.

After first sightings, continue to report all monarchs — adults, eggs, and larvae. All sightings are included on Journey North's real-time maps. Citizen scientists are making important contributions to the understanding of monarchs and migration.

Report Your Sightings
journeynorth.org/monarch/