Pismo Beach Monarch Butterfly Grove

Once a year, migrating monarch butterflies find their way to a grove of trees in Pismo Beach. The monarchs spend the winter nights and cooler days huddled together and hanging in clumps from the trees in this special grove.

On warmer days the butterflies will take periodic flights to drink dew and nectar from nearby foliage.
This monarch butterfly population has been migrating to the Pismo Beach grove each year for several decades. They begin arriving in November and leave sometime in February. Up to 150,000 butterflies have been counted in some years. Last year, the population counted was 22,000. There are other monarch groves on the Central Coast in Monterey, Morro Bay and the Ellwood grove near Santa Barbara but the Pismo Beach monarch butterfly grove is the largest grove in California. The monarchs that come to Pismo Beach have a lifespan of 6 months.
The Pismo Beach monarch grove is located on Highway 1 just north of Grand Avenue and just south of the Pismo State Beach North Beach Campground. The grove is open daily and docents provide guided walks at 11AM and 2PM. Group tours may be arranged by calling 805-773-8919. There is a volunteer-run trailer/office on the site which is staffed daily from 10AM to 4PM. The office is a handy source of information about the monarchs and how we can help nurture and protect their endangered populations (here's a hint: Got Milkweed?). There is also a nice selection of gifts available. Remember to bring your camera and/or binoculars. For more info, visit: The Monarch Butterfly website.