Monarch butterflies at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge

It’s that time of year again, when the days grow shorter and colorful winged beauties in shades of royalty – monarch, queen, and viceroy – appear en masse in the Big Bend on their migration to Mexico. Along US 98 and I-10, it’s now impossible for a moment to pass by without a blur or orange or a yellow sulfur dancing through the air, my fervent hope not to stop them in their tracks. Mid-month means the Monarch Butterfly Festival at St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge, which is the prime time to see the butterflies clustered atop saltbushes along the Gulf of Mexico. It’s an amazing sight, not to be missed.