What is a monarch butterfly?

Monarch butterflies are famous for traveling thousands of kilometers between breeding grounds in North America and wintering sites in Mexico and coastal California. Their migration is a multigenerational journey, meaning no single butterfly completes the entire round trip. Monarch caterpillars feed on milkweed, which makes the butterflies toxic to many predators. The species has become a conservation symbol because habitat loss and climate pressures have contributed to major population declines in recent decades.