We’re starting to see a fair number of North American (migrating) monarch butterflies on common milkweed blossoms lately, such as this male.
(Only males have a small, dark bump in a vein on each of their hindwings. These two “androconal patches” contain pheromones that attract females.) Here’s a female:
It seems that this long-distance commuter is not as threatened as once thought. Last fall, the International Union for Conservation of Nature moved the monarch from its red “Endangered” list down to its “Vulnerable” list and said that it could lower the warning to “Near Threatened” if planned studies indicate that the population is stable or growing.
The primary concern is that common milkweed is disappearing due to land development. That plant is a favorite of many polinators, including bees:
(Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on July 15, 2024.)