Why Monarchs Wear Windows — Behind the milkweed patch, where the leaves smelled green and sticky, Tessa invented a game called Secret Windows. Read the full story →
Behind the milkweed patch, where the leaves smelled green and sticky, Tessa invented a game called Secret Windows. She held a curled grass blade to one eye and whispered, “If I can see you, you owe me a secret.” The beetles clacked away. The crickets zipped their legs shut. But a plain orange butterfly landed beside her, thirsty from the sun, and asked what counted as a window.
Now, you didn’t hear this from me, but Tessa’s curiosity could outrun a rabbit. She dipped a milkweed stem into dew and drew little panes across the butterfly’s wings—long windows, round windows, tiny dot windows along the edges. Light slipped through them like warm honey. The butterfly lifted off, and every bird in the meadow blinked, confused by all those bright openings.
By sundown, the butterfly had shown the trick to her cousins. Ever since, monarchs have worn black frames around orange secret windows, so the meadow can peek through while they travel. Look at those wing panes again—you might catch Tessa’s game still running behind the milkweed patch.
