{"id":135857,"date":"2024-10-21T02:42:24","date_gmt":"2024-10-21T07:42:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=135857"},"modified":"2024-10-20T15:31:27","modified_gmt":"2024-10-20T20:31:27","slug":"male-and-female-monarch-butterfly-photos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/10\/21\/male-and-female-monarch-butterfly-photos\/","title":{"rendered":"Male And Female Monarch Butterfly Photos"},"content":{"rendered":"

Monarchs on the Move: Male vs. Female Differences<\/strong><\/p>\n

As the Monarch butterflies made their way through Arkansas at the end of September, I had the chance to take a couple of photos that really show off the unique features between the males and females.<\/p>\n

Monarchs are amazing, and it\u2019s even more incredible when you take a closer look at the subtle but important differences between them.<\/p>\n

\"MaleMale Monarch butterfly in autumn<\/span><\/p>\n

In the first photo, you\u2019ll see a male Monarch butterfly busy at work, nectaring on a sedum plant. Male Monarchs have two distinguishing marks that set them apart from females.<\/p>\n

If you look closely at their hindwings, you’ll notice a pair of dark spots, one on each wing. These spots, known as androconia, are scent glands used during courtship.<\/p>\n

The males are also a bit more slender compared to the females.<\/p>\n

\"MonarchFemale Monarch butterfly nectaring on flowers<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, let\u2019s take a look at the female. The female Monarch, which is nectaring on a Meadow Sage in the second photo, lacks those dark spots on her hindwings.<\/p>\n

Instead, her wings are marked with thicker black veins, which give her wings a more bold and distinct look.<\/p>\n

While both male and female Monarchs share those iconic orange and black colors, the females tend to have wings that appear slightly more robust.<\/p>\n

\"MaleMale Monarch butterfly – key difference between females<\/span><\/p>\n

Finally, I wanted to highlight the key difference by outlining those dark spots on the male\u2019s wings in the third photo. This close-up shows exactly where the spots are located, making it easy to tell them apart from the females at a glance. These androconia are part of what makes the male Monarch stand out during migration, each and every time I see them.<\/p>\n

The differences between male and female Monarch<\/span><\/a> butterflies may be subtle, but they\u2019re easy to spot once you know what to look for. Whether it\u2019s the male\u2019s scent glands or the female\u2019s bold veining, both are beautiful in their own unique ways.<\/p>\n

If you happen to catch a glimpse of them nectaring on your local plants, take a moment to look closer and see which one you\u2019re observing!<\/p>\n

Diann MacRae asked about the differences between male and female Monarchs the last time I shared photos of a female<\/span><\/a>. It took me a while, but I wanted to make sure I wrote about the differences. Today is that day.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see my insect and spider galleries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As the Monarch butterflies made their way through Arkansas at the end of September, I had the chance to take a couple of photos that really show off the unique features between the males and females.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":135853,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13950,1171,13951],"tags":[4004,15882,970,6098,6557,7353,15835,6041,6042,4982,6040,4827,4620,4070,6518,2217,13931,1799,4062,15674,3946,530,11012,1172,6044,15824,13966],"class_list":["post-135857","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arkansas","category-monarch-butterflies","category-sebastian-county","tag-adult","tag-androconia","tag-autumn","tag-blooming","tag-blooms","tag-blossoms","tag-brush-footed-butterflies","tag-butterflies","tag-butterfly","tag-comparison","tag-danaus-plexippus","tag-differences","tag-fall","tag-female","tag-flowering","tag-flowers","tag-garden","tag-insects","tag-male","tag-meadow-sage","tag-migrating","tag-migration","tag-monarch","tag-monarch-butterfly","tag-nectaring","tag-suburban","tag-yard"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/monarch-butterfly-male-sedum-mia-mcpherson-9234.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-zlf","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":134664,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/09\/16\/my-first-monarch-butterfly-in-arkansas\/","url_meta":{"origin":135857,"position":0},"title":"My First Monarch Butterfly In Arkansas","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"September 16, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"On the same day that I photographed the Carolina Wren, whose photos I shared yesterday, I saw and photographed my first Monarch butterfly in Arkansas!","rel":"","context":"In "Arkansas"","block_context":{"text":"Arkansas","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/arkansas\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Monarch butterfly in Arkansas, Sebastian County","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/monarch-butterfly-arkansas-mia-mcpherson-1158.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/monarch-butterfly-arkansas-mia-mcpherson-1158.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/monarch-butterfly-arkansas-mia-mcpherson-1158.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/monarch-butterfly-arkansas-mia-mcpherson-1158.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":135485,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/10\/11\/autumn-female-monarch-butterfly-in-my-viewfinder\/","url_meta":{"origin":135857,"position":1},"title":"Autumn Female Monarch Butterfly In My Viewfinder","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"October 11, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"What's up today? I've got a few female Monarch butterfly images I\u2019ve been meaning to share but I hadn\u2019t edited them until now. This morning seems perfect!","rel":"","context":"In "Arkansas"","block_context":{"text":"Arkansas","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/arkansas\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Monarch butterfly nectaring on flowers, Sebastian County, Arkansas","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/monarch-butterfly-female-mia-mcpherson-7412.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/monarch-butterfly-female-mia-mcpherson-7412.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/monarch-butterfly-female-mia-mcpherson-7412.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/monarch-butterfly-female-mia-mcpherson-7412.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":141709,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2025\/03\/16\/monarchs-at-a-crossroads-in-an-era-of-butterfly-decline\/","url_meta":{"origin":135857,"position":2},"title":"Monarchs At A Crossroads In An Era Of Butterfly Decline","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 16, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The contrasting fates of eastern and western Monarchs underscore that their future is still uncertain. With dedicated efforts, we can help butterfly populations rebound\u2014but time is running out.","rel":"","context":"In "Arkansas"","block_context":{"text":"Arkansas","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/arkansas\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Female Monarch butterfly feeds on purple flowers, showcasing its distinctive orange and black wing pattern, Sebastian County, Arkansas","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/monarch-butterfly-adult-female-mia-mcpherson-7435.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/monarch-butterfly-adult-female-mia-mcpherson-7435.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/monarch-butterfly-adult-female-mia-mcpherson-7435.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, 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McPherson","date":"June 18, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"I'm always happy to photograph \"other things with wings\" when I am out in the field so last week when I spotted my first of year Monarch butterfly I had to take a few photos of it.","rel":"","context":"In "Box Elder County"","block_context":{"text":"Box Elder County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/box-elder-county-utah\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Monarch Butterfly on a Netleaf Hackberry, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/monarch-butterfly-netleaf-hackberry-mia-mcpherson-3891.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/monarch-butterfly-netleaf-hackberry-mia-mcpherson-3891.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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