ANIMAL ISSUES -

MONARCH BUTTERFLIES REMEMBER A VANISHED MOUNTAIN

 

 

During their migration south, monarch butterflies fly over Lake Superior and at one point they veer east and then south again. Why do they do this?

 

Scientists believe that in the distant past a mountain used to block their path. The old flight map is still embedded in their genes, and they follow it, although the mountain was eroded away a long time ago.

 

Monarch butterflies are some of the toughest insects in the world. They migrate from southern Canada to Central Mexico.  The journey outlasts their individual lifetimes, so they lay eggs along the route. No one generation makes the whole trip.

 

Read more:  http://io9.com/butterflies-remember-a-mountain-that-hasnt-existed-for-509321799

And for a little geology, I'd like to recommend Ghost Mountains and Vanished Oceans by John Wilson.  I really enjoyed this book about ancient geological changes in what is now Canada and the United States.

http://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Mountains-Vanished-Oceans-America/dp/1554700477