Mexico's Biosphere Reserve opens for tourist visits as the monarch migration season picks up, but conservationists aren't estimating how many of the threatened orange and black butterflies there are just yet. Gavino Garay reports.
West of Mexico City is this Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary... where video of migration season speaks for itself. After weathering heavy storms in August in North America and storms and strong winds in Mexico, the butterflies began arriving to Mexico's Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve as early as November 2. Conservation efforts for the iconic black and orange butterfly goes well beyond Mexico's borders. It's an international effort, says Felipe Martinez of the Monarch Butterfly Reserve. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) DIRECTOR OF THE MONARCH BUTTERFLY RESERVE, FELIPE MARTINEZ, SAYING: "Mexico is working closely with the United States and Canadian authorities to establish a series of actions to conserve the habitat of the Monarch butterfly along its migratory route and its winter hibernation areas. We are working to reduce insecticides and pesticides in the United States and here we continue to work towards the conservation of forests which are the natural habitat of the Monarch butterfly." Though the forest is thick with butterflies now, conservationists are being cautious about estimating just how many of them are here. They won't put out a number until January. Surveys indicate that the monarch butterfly population is only 15% of what it once was two decades ago. But thanks to international efforts like these, those numbers are on the mend. And it's a sight to behold.
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