Return of the Monarch?

Seasonal migrations of Monarch (or Milkweed) butterflies in North America and Mexico were once a spectacular annual event. The numbers of these insects have dramatically declined in recent times. For example, in 2020, only 200 of the Western Monach gathered on vegetation at Pismo Beach in California. Pismo Beach is a stop-off before the insects fly thousands of miles west to overwinter. In this same location, in 2021, around 20,000 of these butterflies were noted, ahead of the official count (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/nov/21/western-monarch-butterflies-migration-increase-california). At first glance, it may appear that the migrating Monarch has been saved. Specialists have warned, however, that it is much too early to make this judgement. 20,000 is a much smaller number than was once seen historically. Climate change is more than likely to disrupt survival and migration in such a delicate species.