Sky Blue Asters And A Monarch

September 28, 2025

A Monarch (Danaus plexippus) stopping by on a sunny afternoon in autumn for a meal of nectar from the many blooms of Sky Blue Asters (Symphyotrichum oolentangiense), as it travels south. Asters are an autumn blooming plant that provides an important source of energy for their incredible migration.

These Monarchs that are migrating, live for 8 or 9 months which enables them to make the journey. Members of the summer generations live for only for a short, 2 to 6 weeks.

Wishing them a good trip.

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Published by

Brenda Clements Jones

Brenda is a certified Virginia Master Naturalist, a Habitat Defender for Shenandoah National Park, and a devoted fan of Mother Nature. She lives in a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Shenandoah National Park, and hikes up to the higher elevations of her mountain often to see what nature is up to. Her constant hiking companion is a camera that captures nature as it unfolds through the seasons. It’s her goal to share the natural world around her through her photographs.