By CONNIE MERTZ

Have you been noticing monarch butterflies? I love to watch them float through the air effortlessly in fields rich in goldenrod. Though we may not appreciate the goldenrod, we can't deny their beauty on a bright fall day. Watching monarchs light from flower to flower is intriguing and delightful.

Of course, their lives begin with the milkweed plant. Here, a tiny round pale green egg is laid about the size of a pencil-point. Once hatched, the monarch caterpillar is distinguished by its black, yellow and white body. One can find them in all stages of growth. It's lots of fun searching through a waste field of milkweed for monarchs, particularly for kids. The caterpillars are harmless to the touch.

Once they reach full size, they pupate, and no other encasement is as beautiful. The mint green chrysalis has golden dots, and it's as if a master designer hand-painted each one. The chrysalis is attached delicately from the milkweed or a nearby plant. It takes about 10-12 days for the monarch butterfly to emerge from the chrysalis.

One of the most interesting features about this species of butterfly is that they migrate - all the way to Mexico. Individuals who tag monarchs through the "Monarch Watch" program are always excited to see if their tagged butterfly was identified - proof that monarchs truly do migrate.

Monarch Trivia:

• Birds avoid feeding on monarch butterflies because their bodies are laced with poison.

• The viceroy mimics the color of a monarch, and is ignored by birds even though it is harmless.

• Monarchs feed on goldenrod as they migrate south.

• Our Canadian friends call the monarch, "King Billy" because of its orange and black colors as those of King William of Orange.