Monarch butterfly numbers flutter up, but still off recent highs

Favorable weather conditions at breeding grounds for monarch butterflies in Mexico are expected to help raise their numbers to possibly more than 100 million this year, about triple of a few years ago, a study released on Thursday said.

But the overall number of the majestic orange and black butterflies that travel thousands of miles (km) on a migration into the United States and Canada is still well below the 1 billion range of two decades ago, the study from a Texas A&M University researcher said.

"It seems conditions have been successful for monarchs overwintering – not too wet . . .