“Right now I am in one of the most magical, special places on the planet,” opens Phil Torres of The Jungle Diaries
Deep in the Mexican rainforest, tens of millions of monarch butterflies make their way high up in the mountains of central Mexico.
Few people have seen this true wonder of nature but, thankfully, Phil Torres of The Jungle Diaries is happy to take viewers along on this amazing journey.
Monarch butterflies by the millions sound like a soothing waterfall when they fly.
One of the reasons for his trip to see the monarchs is to record the actual sound that the butterflies make when they flap their wings in unison.
It’s hard to believe the sound of butterfly wings makes a sound but with over 140 million flying together, it takes ASMR to another level.
This gorgeous symphony of butterfly wings happens every year.
Monarch butterflies travel to Mexico in winter to spend their days huddled together amid the branches of oyamel fir trees.
As Torres heads up the mountain, he videos his adventure and his anticipation grows as he thinks about witnessing one of the world’s most magical natural occurrences.
“I’m hiking 10,500 ft…I’m a little out of breath but what we are about to experience is not just visually stunning, it’s not just emotionally stunning, audibly stunning.” – Torres
The monarch butterflies are packed together on the trees by the millions. Torres has to wait for the butterflies to warm up before they can take flight.
“Butterflies like most insects are ectothermic…meaning their metabolism and energy is entirely dependent on the heat of the sun.” – Torres
It’s hard to even know what you’re looking at until you see one or two begin to fly away. The waterfall sound is truly unique and beautiful as the butterflies cascade off the trees and into the air.
One might question whether the event is real or imagined.
“It’s not until you’re surrounded by millions of butterflies that you can hear each flapping-wing amplified by another.” – Torres
Monarch butterflies choose the oyamel fir trees, also known as ‘sacred firs’ because the trees create a microclimate that protects them, according to Pablo Jaramillo-López, a research scientist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. – nationalgeographic.com
“The tree canopy and ecosystem provide a blanket effect for the monarchs, so the temperatures don’t go too high or too low,” – López.
Monarchs are easily recognizable with their beautifully colored orange and black wings. They migrate each year and lay their eggs on milkweed plants that hatch into striped black, gold, and white caterpillars. – nwf.org.
The life of a monarch butterfly is a miracle of nature.
Monarchs are endangered but their numbers are growing thanks to more native plants like milkweed being available for them along their 3,000-mile migration route.
‘Milkweed produces glycoside toxins to deter animals from eating them, but monarchs have evolved immunity to these toxins. As they feed, monarch caterpillars store up the toxins in their body, making them taste bad, which in turn deters their predators. The toxins remain in their system even after metamorphosis, protecting them as adult butterflies as well.’ – nwf.org
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It’s truly a sound you must hear for yourself to understand the captivating people have with it.
Thankfully, you can do just that in the short video below!
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