Multiple locations:

• Cerro Altamirano.
• Sierra Chincua - Campanario - Chivati - Huacal Corridor.
• Cerro Pelón.

The Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve is located about 100 km northwest of Mexico City, in the eastern part of the state of Michoacán, on the border with the western part of the state of Mexico. It encompasses the municipalities of Temascalcingo, San Felipe del Progreso, Donato Guerra, and Villa de Allende in the state of Mexico, and Contepec, Senguío, Angangueo, Ocampo, Zitácuaro, and Aporo in the state of Michoacán.

It covers an area of 56,259 hectares of mountainous terrain with abundant forest vegetation.

The Monarch butterfly undertakes a remarkable journey of 2,000 to 4,500 kilometers from the forests of Canada and the United States to Mexico, and the same distance back. The butterflies seek the mountains of the reserve, located at three thousand meters above sea level, because they provide ideal living conditions during the winter with cool temperatures, a humid climate, and large oyamel, fir, pine, and cedar trees (20 to 50 meters tall) that protect them from the rain.

Between the months of November and March, millions of Monarch butterflies from extensive areas of North America nest in small areas of the forest within this reserve, coloring the trees orange. The number of butterflies is so great that even the branches of the old trees bend under their weight.

The sanctuaries open to the public in the State of Mexico are: Parador Turístico El Capulín and Macheros, and Parador Turístico La Mesa. In Michoacán, there are Parador Turístico El Rosario, Centro de Cultura para la Conservación Sierra Chincua, and Parador Turístico Senguio.

The most visited sanctuaries are El Rosario in the Municipality of Ocampo and Sierra Chincua in the municipality of Angangueo in Michoacán, as well as the Ejido El Capulín Sanctuary, Piedra Herrada Sanctuary, and La Mesa Sanctuary in the State of Mexico.

The Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve is a highly attractive destination for ecotourism enthusiasts.

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