FOR THE KIDS : Regal Wings : Wintering monarch butterflies brighten several coastal sites. An expert will lead a walk through one of their largest colonies.

A single orange and black monarch butterfly is a wonder in itself. Imagine thousands of them, clustered in a grove of eucalyptus trees.

The migrating butterflies are arriving in Ventura County for their annual winter layover. Each year they congregate at a few select sites near the coast, fluttering about in a mass of brilliant color.

“It’s a magnificent spectacle,” said John Lane, an expert on the monarch butterfly who will lead a family walk through one of Ventura County’s largest monarch colonies on Nov. 16.

Lane, education director at Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History, will take the group to the barranca at Camino Real Park in Ventura where the butterflies return each year to laze away the winter months. The walk is sponsored by the Ventura Parks and Recreation Department.

Lane has studied monarchs for 30 years and he still rhapsodizes about the congregations that cover the branches of the eucalyptus, Monterey pine and cypress trees along California’s coast.

The monarch’s survival instincts are extraordinary. It is the only North American butterfly that migrates to warmer climates during the winter.

In summer months, monarchs can be found all over the United States and as far north as southern Canada. In late October or early November, about 100 million of them begin their migratory trek, traveling up to 80 miles a day at speeds that approach 30 m.p.h.

Those east of the Rocky Mountains fly to a small patch of mountainous terrain in Mexico. Those west of the Rockies head for the warmth of California’s coast.

Last winter, about 50,000 monarchs wintered at the Camino Real Park site, he said. It’s one of about 12 layover sites in the county. Most are on private property, and some are small with less than 1,000 butterflies.

For public viewing, the Camino Real site is one of the best. Barranca Vista Park in Ventura draws a smaller colony of butterflies. There are two other accessible sites off Pacific Coast Highway: Big Sycamore Canyon in Point Mugu State Park, and Leo Carrillo State Beach, just over the line in Los Angeles County.

Adult butterflies feed on nectar, and caterpillars’ only source of food is the milkweed plant. Since monarchs live six to 10 months, they only make the migratory trek once, puzzling scientists who still aren’t sure how the offspring manage to find the same wintering spots year after year.

“They’re working on pure instinct,” Lane theorizes. To survive, the monarchs need a precise set of climatic conditions--not too hot, not too cool, enough moisture, trees of mixed heights, protection from the wind and sufficient flowers nearby. Only a few spots fit the bill.

Development is gradually destroying wintering sites along California’s coast, Lane said, but the numbers of butterflies are not diminishing. They have their own built-in protection system against predators. The milkweed they eat renders them poisonous to birds.

“The monarchs will never become extinct,” he said.

* WHERE AND WHEN

Monarch butterfly expert John Lane will host two family walks at Ventura’s Camino Real Park, Dean Drive and Varsity Street, Nov. 16, from 1 to 2:30 p.m. and from 3 to 4:30 p.m. Cost is $3 for adults, $1 for kids 7 to 12, and free for under 6. To register, call 658-4726.

Lane also will host a two-part workshop that includes a slide show at Ventura City Hall on Nov. 15 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., followed by a walk at Camino Real Park either on Nov. 16 from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., or on Nov. 17 from 1 to 3 p.m. Cost is $12. Call 658-4726 to register.

OTHER KID DOINGS

* Carnegie Art Museum in Oxnard is offering art classes for children and youths Tuesday through Dec. 22. Six-week series are offered in oil painting, beyond doodling, mixed-media and paper art. Call 984-4649 for information.

* Actors for Children presents “In Other Words,” a zany look at communication through body motion, Saturday, 10 to 11 a.m. at the Camarillo Community Center. Tickets $3 for adults, $2 for children. Call 482-1996.