Butterflies use landmarks to reach sites

Monarch butterflies fly without a map, and use basic orientation and landmarks to find their way to their wintering sites, thousands of miles away. This was concluded by a team of scientists, including researchers from the University of Guelph, who examined the insects' flight patterns.

Monarch butterflies fly without a map, and use basic orientation and landmarks to find their way to their wintering sites, thousands of miles away. This was concluded by a team of scientists, including researchers from the University of Guelph, who examined the insects' flight patterns.

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The team, which included researchers from Queen's University, Germany and Denmark, also analysed more than 50 years' worth of migration data to learn how monarchs find their way for the first time to their wintering habitat in Mexico.