What many of us wouldn't give to go to Mexico every winter to enjoy the warm sun? Well you can, just hitch a ride on the gossamer wings of a Monarch butterfly.

The journey for the Monarch can range up to 3,000 miles as they make the long hard trek to the forests high in the mountains of Mexico.

"Most butterfly species occurring in Oklahoma do not migrate," said Melynda Hickman, Natural Resources Biologist for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation who also works with the Backyard Certification Program.

Butterflies that commonly overwinter as adults in Oklahoma include the mourning cloak, goatweed, question mark, hackberry emperor and the red admiral. Some people may try a hibernating box to help the butterfly through the winter. According to Hickman, the only thing so far that has used her box are moths and once a red admiral butterfly.

"In nature, butterflies use cracks in logs, fence post, loose boards, or tree bark," Hickman said. A suggestion from the biologist is to try a natural shelter for butterflies in the winter months such as tacking rough cedar boards or large slabs of bark in protected places - such as on fences or on the side of the house or garage. Place the boards or slabs vertically, leaving one side not completely nailed down, with a crack where the butterfly can wedge itself inside.

"Butterflies, such as the Viceroy, pupate in a sheltered spot for the winter. They lay their eggs in the leaves of perennials for overwintering. If we cut down these plants we may be destroying next year's generation of butterflies," Hickman warns about fall cleaning of your flowerbeds. She suggest trimming back to no less than four inches of the stem and if you have a wildflower meadow to raise your mower to about four inches. This way you will not destroy all the eggs in the stems of the plants.

To help the migrating butterflies such as the Monarch and to start planning your butterfly garden for next spring, you can contact the Wildlife Diversity Program, 1801 N. Lincoln Blvd., Oklahoma City, OK, 73105, by email or by calling (405) 522-3087 to receive a list of butterfly host plants and caterpillar host plants.