from the mini page © 2010 universal uclick mysterious ... the mini page © 2010 universal uclick...

© 2010 Universal Uclick

release dates: October 2-8 40-1 (10)

from The Mini Page © 2010 Universal Uclick

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Mysterious Migration

Monarchs Rule! Every fall, hundreds of millions of monarch butterflies fly thousands of miles to their winter homes in California and Mexico. No other butterfly migrates this way, flying back and forth like birds do. It is a mystery how the butterflies know where to go each year. Other butterflies don’t teach the monarchs where to fly. It’s every monarch for itself. This is very unusual. Most other migratory animals learn where to go from an older animal. The Mini Page talked to monarch experts to learn more about this amazing and beautiful insect.

Migration When animals migrate (MY-grate), they move from one area to another during certain times of the year. Then they move back to their original homes when the seasons change. This travel can help them find food or survive temperature changes.

Flying to warmth Like their tropical ancestors, modern monarchs cannot survive the cold. Each fall, North American monarchs must fly to warmer climates. Most monarchs spend the winter in one special area in the Mexican mountains, the oyamel (oh-yah-MEL) fir forests. The branches provide a protective covering that helps keep the monarchs from getting too hot or cold. The shape of the branches and needles allows thousands of butterflies to cluster together for protection. Monarchs in the far north begin migrating in early August. The closer to Mexico they are, the later they take off. Monarchs begin arriving in their winter refuges in late October.

Monarchs from the East and Midwest fly to Mexico each fall. Monarchs from the West winter in California.

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Tens of thousands of monarchs might spend the night on one single oyamel fir tree in Mexico. This helps them stay warm.

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Monarchs need a lot of food so they can make their long journey. They find food in the nectar, or sweet liquid, of flowers.

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Words that remind us of monarchs are hidden in the block below. Some words are hidden backward or diagonally. See if you can find: AIR, BIRDS, BUTTERFLY, CATERPILLAR, COLD, EGG, FALL, FLOWERS, FLY, GLIDE, INSECT, METAMORPHOSIS, MEXICO, MIGRATION, MILKWEED, NAVIGATE, OYAMEL, POD, PUPA, THERMAL, WINGS.

Monarch Butterfliestry ’nfind

What an amazing journey!

F C W E A Y L F R E T T U B M N A O I G I D E E W K L I M I A O L L N G R M T C E S N I G V Y P L D G L A M R E H T Y R I A U P O D S L O C I X E M A G M P P Y L F S R E W O L F T A E A Y S D R I B E D I L G I T L R A L L I P R E T A C Y O E S I S O H P R O M A T E M N


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the news

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ready resourcesfrom The Mini Page © 2010 Universal Uclick

The Mini Page provides ideas for websites, books or other resources that will help you learn more about this week’s topics. On the Web: • www.monarchwatch.org • www.fs.fed.us/monarchbutterfly • www.fws.gov/saintmarks • www.naba.org At the library • “Monarchs” by Kathryn Lasky • “Monarch and Milkweed” by Helen Frost


Extreme MigrationFinding their way No one knows how monarchs navigate, or figure out the right direction. How do they find their way to a place they’ve never been to before? Their parents and grandparents were born during the journey back north and have never seen the winter refuge. Their great-grandparents have already died. Monarchs seem to be able to figure out where they are from anywhere on the planet. Somehow, they gain information from their surroundings. Sometimes monarchs are forced off their route. Storms might blow them hundreds of miles away. But they can still figure out how to get back on course. Experts think monarchs may be checking the position of the sun. Maybe monarchs are able to detect levels of blue and ultraviolet light. Maybe they can sense the Earth’s magnetic field. No one really knows.

Super flier Many tropical butterflies can fly long distances. But none of them can fly as far as the monarch. It can fly as far as 2,000 miles on its journey to Mexico. The monarch also flies higher than any other large insect on the planet. It can fly up to 10,000 feet above the Earth’s surface. Hundreds of thousands of monarchs could be flying overhead, and we might not even see them because they are so high above us.Soaring through the air

Monarchs ride up into the atmosphere on thermals. A thermal is like a current of hot air rising above the Earth. Monarchs soar

up in the thermals the same way birds such as hawks do. The monarchs then glide out on the wind toward their destination.

Saving energy Gliding allows monarchs to fly for two to three months. They need to flap their wings only about every 20 to 30 feet, saving wear on their wings.

Monarchs feed on a saltbush at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge in Florida. Thousands of monarchs from the East Coast rest at the refuge before continuing on to Mexico.

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Rookie Cookie’s RecipePeachy Keen Dessert

You’ll need:• 2 peaches• 2 teaspoons brown sugar• 1/4 cup light sour cream• 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts or pecans• honey to drizzleWhat to do:1. Cut up peaches into bite-size pieces (with or without skin).2. Sprinkle brown sugar on top of peaches.3. Stir in sour cream.4. Add nuts on top and drizzle with small amount of honey. Serve

immediately.You will need an adult’s help with this recipe.


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Mini Spy . . .Mini Spy is watching some monarch butterflies in the park. See if you can find:• cat • word MINI • dragon • teapot• horseshoe • bird • peanut • butterfly• frog • bucket • man’s face • bandage


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Meet Kristen Bell Kristen Bell stars as Marni in the Disney movie “You Again.” She has been in several movies and TV shows. She has appeared on Broadway in plays such as “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.” Kristen, 30, grew up in Huntington Woods, Mich. She first went on stage as a banana in a community play when she was 11. She starred as Dorothy in her high school production of “The Wizard of Oz.”

She later studied musical theater at a school for the arts in New York. She does volunteer work for several animal charities. She adopted a black Labrador that had been rescued after Hurricane Katrina.

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All the following jokes have something in common. Can you guess the common theme or category?

Peggy: What is a king’s favorite butterfly?Cheryl: A monarch!

John: How can you revive a monarch butterfly?

Rick: With moth-to-moth resuscitation!

Becky: Why did the little boy throw the butter off the mountain?

Carly: He wanted to see some butter fly!


The Life of a Monarch

The Mini Page StaffBetty Debnam - Founding Editor and Editor at Large Lisa Tarry - Managing Editor Lucy Lien - Associate Editor Wendy Daley - Artist

Unusual life cycle Not all monarchs will ever see a winter refuge. Most of the monarchs that fly south in the fall are the great-grandchildren of the butterflies that flew south the year before. The adult monarchs that spend the winter in Mexico can live nine months. Experts believe this is the longest life span of any adult butterflies. However, they don’t live long enough to show their children how to reach their winter homes.Metamorphosis Like other insects, butterflies go through metamorphosis (meh-tuh-MORE-fuh-sus). They go through these stages as they grow up: 1. Egg

2. The larva, or caterpillar

3. The pupa (PYOO-puh), or bag-like chrysalis (KRI-suh-lus), protecting the changing insect

4. The adult. About a month after leaving their winter homes, monarch females begin laying eggs. Adult butterflies growing up from these eggs have much shorter lives than their parents. They live only about one month. The only group of monarch butterflies that can live nine months are those that will be migrating thousands of miles.

Monarchs in danger People are destroying milkweed plants by mowing them or spraying herbicides. They want land for crops or buildings. Poor people in Mexico are cutting down the oyamel fir trees for firewood and building materials. The forests are disappearing. If the monarch loses its only host plant and its main winter home, it will be in serious trouble. People in Canada, the United States and Mexico are joining together to protect monarch habitats.The important milkweed

The only thing monarch larvae can eat is milkweed. The females lay their eggs on these plants. Milkweeds have a substance in them that is poisonous to most birds. It hurts monarchs just a little. When monarch larvae eat the milkweed, this substance becomes part of the butterfly’s body. If a bird eats a monarch, the bird becomes so sick it throws up. The next time the bird sees a monarch, it knows not to eat it. This is one of the reasons monarchs can fly higher than other big insects. Most birds flying that high leave the monarchs alone, but they gobble up other insects.

The Mini Page thanks Dr. Orley R. “Chip” Taylor, director of Monarch Watch; and Robin Will, refuge ranger, St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge, for help with this issue.Look through your newspaper for stories and pictures about wonderful things in nature.Next week, The Mini Page is about video game art.

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A monarch caterpillar dines on a milkweed pod.

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You can help by planting milkweed in your yard or school grounds. Plant flowers butterflies like for food. Keep a journal of butterfly patterns in your area. Have you noticed any changes in the population?

Millions of monarchs migrate to the oyamel forests in Mexico each fall.


Supersport: Chris JohnsonHeight: 5-11 Birthdate: 9-23-85Weight: 191 Hometown: Orlando, Fla. Another football season has kicked off, and Chris Johnson’s ready to rumble. Now in his third NFL season, the Tennessee Titans speedster is a premier pro running back. In 2009 he rushed for 2,006 yards, becoming just the sixth player in league history to reach the 2,000-yard mark.

With blazing speed and bulldog determination, Johnson might have a shot at breaking the single-season rushing record of 2,105 yards set by the Los Angeles Rams’ Eric Dickerson in 1984. Johnson, who set or tied 18 school records at East Carolina University, also is a talented pass receiver. He had 503 reception yards last year in addition to his rushing totals. He was named the Associated Press Offensive Player of the Year. Johnson lists several favorites on the Titans’ website: favorite car, 1973 Chevy Caprice; favorite food, pizza. But his favorite thing seems to be running for big yardage on a football field.

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from the mini page © 2010 universal uclick mysterious ... the mini page © 2010 universal uclick...

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