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NEWS STREAM

A Night at the Academy Awards; Ukrainian Ceasefire Strained; The Mysterious Migration of the Monarch Butterfly; At least 70 Dead in Bangladesh Ferry Accident; Yellow Dust Clouds Seoul

Aired February 23, 2015 - 8:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. And welcome to News Stream where news and technology meet.

Now Birdman wins the big prize at the Oscars on a night of stirring speeches.

And the family of a missing British girl speaks out. Police say the girl and her friends could be on their way to join ISIS in Syria.

And 25 years on, we look at how Photoshop has changed our view of the world.

Birdman flew high at this year's Academy Awards, winning four of the top prizes: Best Director, Best Picture, cinematography and original

screenplay.

But the Oscar attention, it wasn't just on the art of moviemaking. Now celebrities used the spotlight to bring attention to a host of issues,

including women's wage inequality and U.S. race relations.

Now for more on the show's memorable moments, CNN's Stephanie Elam reports from Hollywood.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SEAN PENN, ACTOR: The Oscar goes to "Birdman".

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Alejandro Inarritu's "Birdman" soared over the competition taking the top prize of the night's best

picture.

ALEJANDRO INARRITU, BEST DIRECTOR, "BIRDMAN": We are here. I don't know how that happened but it happened.

ELAM: "Birdman" about a fallen star fighting for success earned four Oscars including original screenplay and director. First time host, Neil

Patrick Harris, got into the act recreating "Birdman's" famous underwear scene.

HARRIS: Acting is a noble profession.

ELAM: It was a night marked with passionate speeches about causes near to the winner's heart.

Eddie Redmayne who won best actor for playing Stephen Hawking in "The Theory of Everything" dedicated his award to people battling ALS, the

diseases that afflicts Hawking.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EDDIE REDMAYNE, BEST ACTOR "THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING": This Oscar -- wow -- this belongs to all of those people around the world battling ALS.

ELAM: Julianne Moore earned the best actress Oscar for "Still Alice" about a woman struggling with Alzheimer's.

JULIANNE MOORE, BEST ACTRESS "STILL ALICE": And people with Alzheimer's deserve to be seen so that we can find a cure.

ELAM: J.K. Simmons won the supporting actor prize for his tough as nails music instructor in "Whiplash" while Patricia Arquette took

supporting actress for "Boyhood" and used the Oscar platform to speak out.

ARQUETTE: It's our time to have wage equality once and for all, and equal rights for women in the United States of America.

ELAM: Graham Moore made a startling confession after his adapted screenplay win for "The Imitation Game" about World War II code breaker

Alan Turing who was persecuted because he was gay.

GRAHAM MOORE, BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY, "THE IMITATION GAME": When I was 16 years old, I tried to kill myself because I felt weird and I felt

different and I felt like I did not belong. And now I'm standing here. I would like for this moment to be for that kid out there who feels like

she's weird or she's different or she doesn't fit in anywhere. Yes, you do.

ELAM: John Legend and Common brought the audience to its feet and tears with their Oscar-winning song "Glory" from the civil rights drama

"Selma". The raw emotion carried over to their acceptance speech.

JOHN LEGEND, SINGER: We say that "Selma" is now because the struggle for justice is right now.

ELAM: And in an unexpected musical highlight, Lady Gaga performed a 50th anniversary salute to "The Sound of Music."

Stephanie Elam, CNN, Hollywood.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Moments ago, you just heard some of Patricia Arquette's acceptance speech after her best supporting actress win for the movie

Boyhood. Now she plays the mother in the film which took 12 years to shoot.

Now what we want to share the longer version of her speech with you, because it was such a standout moment.

Now it was enough to bring Meryl Streep and other to their feet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARQUETTE: To every woman who gave birth, to every taxpayer and citizen of this nation, we have fought for everybody else's equal rights.

It's our time to have wage equality once and for all and equal rights for women in the United States of America.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: What a moment

Now for more on the big event, for more on the Oscars, let's bring in Michaela Pereira, live for us from Los Angeles. Michaela, good to see you.

And just then, we heard from Patricia Arquette, her Oscar speech, you know, it was such a winning moment for the night. Your thoughts on what was the

winning moment of the Oscars. Your thoughts on the big night?

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN HOST, NEW DAY: Well, first of all, I have to reference that because it still gives me goose bumps when I hear her speak

with such passion. I mean, you saw the reaction. As you mentioned, Meryl Strep giving her a shoutout as well. So many women in the audience.

And I think women around the globe and specifically here in America saying, yes, finally somebody is sort of speaking up for us in that way in

this time. It was really powerful.

Really interesting to note so many social and very personal issues brought to light last night at the Oscars. Many people coming to the stage

speaking about personal things you saw from Graham Moore talking about the need for young people to feel like they belong and making a mission of his

own attempted suicide when he was just 16-years-old.

I wanted to also talk about that -- about Boyhood. Because, you know, this was a very small film, a tiny, tiny, tiny budget, so tiny that even

the actors didn't have contracts, they had 12 years to shoot the film, as you mentioned, so they obviously committed to this long-term, but nobody

knew how it was going to turn out, nobody was -- knew that it was going to be the success it was.

So Patricia Arquette seemingly the best person to speak about those equality rights and those issues during her acceptance speech given the

fact that this was such a small personal film about every day people.

LU STOUT: Yeah, the movie Boyhood, a small independent movie, but the film -- and also the actors making such a huge impact, really incredible to

see. I know that you were working the red carpet last night. You look fabulous by the way. And a number of actors, actresses there -- Reese

Witherspoon, you know, she was making some interesting comments on social media with that hashtag #askhermore campaign, asking interviewers to ask

more than just what are you wearing? Your thoughts on that. And did that encourage other interviewers to ask better and, frankly, less sexist

questions, especially to actresses?

PEREIRA: Yeah, it's been interesting. And I spoke with (inaudible) from Cosmopolitan magazine. And she was part of our coverage for CNN. And

we were talking about this sort of backlash that has been occurring not just at the Oscars, but at some of the other award shows.

The red carpet has become this -- its own animal, right, this own beast. And I think there are women who are feeling like, look, I want to

be taken seriously as a performer, as an artist, as a director, as a cinematographer. I'm not just the gown that I'm wearing. I'm not just the

jewels that I'm wearing.

Now, it's a two-edged sword, right, because we know that some of those women obviously are -- some of them are receiving money to show off these

wonderful gowns and garments and jewels. And other people, you know, are saying that it puts them in the spotlight and it helps them earn a little

bit of money, because we know that women are still not making as much money in the film business and are not as well represented in Hollywood to be

sure.

So, yeah, we saw a little bit of it last night. And certainly it puts us on our toes to ask smarter questions.

But, look, we here at CNN, we pride ourselves on doing that, don't we Kristie?

LU STOUT: Indeed, indeed.

And I've got a last question for you before you go, Michaela, we've got to talk about the host, Neil Patrick Harris, because you know he is

such a favorite. Folks love him. How did he do? What are you hearing there?

PEREIRA: You know, I love him and I think he could do no wrong. But there are some people that are saying that some of the jokes in the first

part of the show fell flat. He delivered on the music, to be sure. He's a song and dance man, so it was really great to see him in that big

environment.

The whole show, they -- the producers promised a lot of music and there was a lot of music in that show.

Some of the critics that we've heard from this morning have said they didn't know if the underwear bit played. I thought it was enjoyable.

LU STOUT: It was enjoyable. And it was a nod to a movie, the movie that swept the night, Birdman afterall. So it all makes sense at the end

of the day and we get a laugh, too.

Michaela Pereira, thank you so much for joining us here on CNNi. Take care.

PEREIRA: My pleasure, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Michaela Pereira, live from L.A.

PEREIRA: I'm going to get a nap.

LU STOUT: Take care.

Now, Citizenfour, now that took the prize for best documentary feature. Now the movie follows the story of the former NSA contractor

Edward Snowden when he flew to Hong Kong in 2013 and began releasing classified U.S. documents to expose the U.S. government's secret

surveillance program.

Now in a statement released by the American Civil Liberties Union, Snowden says he hopes this award will encourage more people to see the film

and, quote, "be inspired by its message that ordinary citizens, working together can change the world."

Now the winners for best original song also had a message in their acceptance speech.

John Legend and Common won the award for the song Glory from the film Selma. And in his speech, Common talked about how the spirit of the U.S.

civil rights movement is still alive. He says people around the world are fighting for better lives, including the pro-democracy protesters in Hong

Kong.

It's a reference to the so-called umbrella movement last year.

Demonstrators blocked the city's main roads for more than two months, calling for the right to elect a leader without interference from Beijing.

Now Glory beat out the song that provided one of the most bizarre sights of the night. Pop duo Tegan and Sara and others, they performed the

Lego Movie theme song Everything is Awesome. The over the top number, it featured dancing cowboys, astronauts, of course construction workers and a

surprise appearance by the comedian Will Arnette in the role of a singing Batman.

But one of the best moments, it came when performers started giving out Oscar statues made out of Legos. And it looks like Oprah Winfrey loved

her little yellow man there.

Now for more on the glitz and the glamour at Sunday's Academy Awards, make sure you check out the entertainment section of our website, just go

to CNN.com/entertainment. And you'll find it there.

Now you're watching News Stream. And coming up in the program, the parents of three missing British teenagers fear that the girls may be

trying to join ISIS as young brides. We'll go live to London after the break.

Also ahead, in Bangladesh, the death toll is still rising from Sunday's deadly ferry crash. We'll have the latest on the search for those

who are missing.

Also, the Ukrainian military says it won't be withdrawing heavy weapons from the front lines. We'll have more on the region's fragile

ceasefire when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Welcome back.

Now UK officials are searching for three British schoolgirls who have been missing for days. Now the teens are believed to be on their way, or

they already are, in Syria where they could be joining ISIS as young brides.

Now the families are pleading for their return.

Now the British prime minister David Cameron says the government is doing what it can to find them, but this is part of a bigger issue that the

community desperately needs to address.

Now let's get the latest now. Atika Shubert joins us from London. And Atika, is there any word on the whereabouts or the safety of the three

missing girls?

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the last that police heard is that they were still in Turkey. It's been several days

now, however, so it's very possible that they've crossed over that very porous border between Turkey and into Syria. But we just don't know at

this point.

And this is why police put out the appeal on Friday. They were hoping to appeal directly to those schoolgirls and tell them don't make another

step, don't go further into Syria, come back home to your parents. And we heard those really heart rending appeals from family members, but it's not

clear if they've had any affect at this point, Kristie.

LU STOUT: And the larger issue here, the ISIS recruitment network there in the UK. If these three young British schoolgirls do, indeed, plan

to join ISIS as young brides, how were they recruited inside the UK?

SHUBERT: Well, it looks as though they were communicating online with several people who were either ISIS followers or perhaps even ISIS members

currently in Syria.

We know they were in touch, for example, with a young woman named Aqsa Mahmoud (ph), she a 19-year-old woman from Glasgow. She left for Syria

about last year. And she also was radicalized online. And since then, she has a blog, which really gives step by step instructions for anybody who

wants to join ISIS on what to be prepared for, what to bring, and then even offers to contact people directly if they need help coming over.

So it's quite possible that they followed her directions into Syria.

Now we don't know that for certain, but this is what security services are looking at this point.

LU STOUT: And Atika, what more have you learned about the three teenagers, their families and the lives that they've led there in the UK?

SHUBERT: Well, this is -- these are families that were living in east London. And they -- these are families that were genuinely shocked at what

happened.

You have to remember, these are teenagers, 15, 16-year-olds, and hiding things from their parents. Their parents said they didn't even know

that they were in any way interested in politics in the Middle East.

So, a lot of the appeals that we've heard are just absolutely stunned that their daughters, their sisters, would make this move to go join ISIS.

LU STOUT: Well, here's hoping that these three schoolgirls will be found and return safely to their homes there in the UK.

Atika Shubert reporting live from London. Thank you.

Now, the Somali terror group al Shabaab has released a video calling for its followers to attack shopping malls in three western countries.

Now malls in the UK, U.S. and Canada have all stepped up security. The al Qaeda-linked group is responsible for that brutal Westgate mall

attack in Kenya that saw 60 people killed.

Now homeland security officials in the U.S. warn law enforcement to be vigilant and shoppers to be particularly careful. But they also say that

there is no credible evidence that any attack is in the works.

Now Bangladesh is dealing with the aftermath of yet another ferry disaster. At least 70 people are confirmed dead after Sunday's tragedy

north of Dhaka.

Now relatives of the dead or missing could only watch from the shore as search teams brought back the victims.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: A heavy burden for rescuers in Bangladesh, retrieving scores of bodies from the Padma River north of the capital. The dead,

passengers on a packed ferry boat that sank after it was hit by a cargo vessel on Sunday.

Dozens of villagers stand on the banks awaiting news of friends and family.

This man overcome after finding the body of his young son.

A local official says they don't even know how many were on board the double decker vessel, adding that passenger manifests often are overlooked

in Bangladesh.

After the crash, many people jumped from the upper deck.

About 50 to 60 people could swim to the shore. The villagers also help them, this official says.

Those on the lower deck may have been trapped as the boat overturned, many women and children among the dead. It was the second deadly crash on

this river in less than a year. Police said the ferry that capsized last August was over-crowded and trying to navigate rough waters.

A quarter of all ferry accidents from 2000 to 2014 took place in river-linked Bangladesh, that's according to statistics from the Worldwide

Ferry Safety Association.

Bangladesh authorities say they will investigate the accident.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: A terrible tragedy. And again at least 70 people are confirmed dead. And we're told that at least 19 of them are children.

Now it looks like in North Korea an upcoming marathon in Pyongyang, it will not be open to outsiders. Now a travel agency specializing in trips

to the reclusive country says that foreigners are barred from this year's race set for April. It says nearly 500 were set to participate, but the

government apparently has concerns about the spread of Ebola.

Now diplomats and aide workers can still enter, but must go through a 21 day quarantine.

You're watching News Stream. And still to come, a quarter century of Photoshop. We take you down memory lane as the photo editing software hits

this milestone.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, you're back watching News Stream.

Now it's not often that a product is so popular that it becomes a verb. Well, we've all heard of an image being Photoshopped. Now the

picture editing application turned 25 this month. The original version of Adobe Photoshop was revolutionary, allowing people to easily make changes

to photographs using their computers. And now, with digital images everywhere, Photoshop is more powerful than ever. Now pictures can be

manipulated in ways we never imagined.

Now to help us take a closer look at the impact of this Adobe product, I'm joined now by Ted Irvine. Now he's the senior design director of Vox

Media. And he joins us now live from Washington.

And Ted, thank you for joining us today to talk about this.

And first off, just how essential is Photoshop to your work as a designer?

TED IRVINE, VOX MEDIA: So for my work as a designer it's kind of an amazing -- I thought back and I've literally used Photoshop pretty much

every day in my work life since about 1996, starting in college.

So it really, really plays a critical role in the work that we do daily.

LU STOUT: Now you're a media producer, so you know this, but many media consumers out there may not, how much of our overall media

experience, online or offline like in print, has been retouched or changed or tweaked by Photoshop?

IRVINE: You know, that's a really, really great question. You know, we don't necessarily tweak images that like would appear in a story unless

we're actually trying to do some type of photo illustration. But I would say probably a fair amount like 40 to 50 percent of images are retouched at

some point in time in the process of, you know, becoming news.

LU STOUT: Gotcha.

Now, last week no doubt you saw the story, it went really viral, that unretouched photo of Beyonce, it leaked, it hit social media. I want to

get your reaction to it -- not the Beyonce photo, but to the response, because a number of people out there, a number of her fans were angry. As

a designer, do you think consumers -- some consumers out there prefer a Photoshopped reality, whether it's Beyonce or a beach or a baby photo, then

reality itself?

IRVINE: Yeah, well I think many people have been conditioned to kind of expect the Photoshop reality. You know, my hope would be people's

expectations would be more around actual reality. But I don't think that's necessarily an option, because so much stuff around advertising, around

fashion, is retouched.

LU STOUT: It's interesting how you used the word condition how you used the word conditioned, that we've been as consumers conditioned to a

new Photoshop type reality.

The word itself is synonymous to image manipulation. Is that a bad thing, or do you think there should be more ethical use of Photoshop?

IRVINE: I really believe there should be more ethical use of Photoshop. It's a very powerful tool, but if you goal is to tell a story

grounded in reality, let's use realistic photos, let's use realistic images.

If your goal is to do something amazing and a little bit in the realm of, you know, in essence fantasy, sure, use Photoshop, take it to its

maximum potential.

But for news, no, let's keep things real.

LU STOUT: And enforcing more ethical use of Photoshop, how do you as a designer, are you able to look at an image and say right away that's been

Photoshopped?

IRVINE: Great question. You know what's funny is it's such a powerful tool that you're first assumption as a designer is that someone

probably has retouched it to some degree.

So my answer honestly is no, I wouldn't necessarily know what has or has not been Photoshopped.

LU STOUT: Wow, that's incredible to hear, especially from a designer such as yourself.

Ted Irvine, senior design director of Vox Media. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts on the power of this application 25 years on.

Take care.

IRVINE: You, too.

LU STOUT: Now you're watching News Stream. And still to come, Ukrainians, they rally in Kiev to mark one year since the Maidan

revolution, but the road to peace still appears to be a long way off.

Also ahead, a dangerous yellow haze is hanging over South Korea. Now details on what is causing it and the precautions residents should take

there. That story is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. You're watching News Stream. And these are your world headlines.

Now it was a big night for Birdman at the Academy Awards. Now the film grabbed Oscars for Best Picture, cinematography, directing and

original screenplay. Now best actor went to Eddie Redmayne for his portrayal of a scientist Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything. And

Julianne Moore took best actress honors for her role in Still Alice.

Now the retrial of two al Jazeera journalists in Egypt has been adjourned until March 8 over a technicality. Mohamed Fahmy and Bahar

Mohamed are accused of supporting the banned Muslim Brotherhood and were freed on bail earlier this month.

Now 70 people are now confirmed dead in a ferry accident in Bangladesh. The double-decker boat capsized after it was hit by a cargo

vessel on Sunday. It happened on the Padma River north of the capital Dhaka and Reuters reports at least 50 passengers were rescued. It says the

cargo ship's captain and crew have been arrested.

Now to eastern Ukraine now where the ceasefire agreed to last week seems to exist only in name. The Ukrainian military says it has not

withdrawn heavy weapons from the front lines, because its troops are still being attacked by pro-Russia separatists.

Now tension is also high in the eastern city of Kharkiv.

A deadly explosion hit an otherwise peaceful protest on Sunday. Now the interior ministry says at least two people were killed and 15 were

wounded.

And for the latest on the ground, let's go to Diana Magnay, she joins us live from Donetsk. And Diana, violent attacks have violated the

ceasefire. Give us the latest.

DIANA MAGNAY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Krisite, the death toll from that bomb attack in Kharkiv has gone up. A 15-year-old boy

died today in hospital from his wounds after that attack.

And on the ground in the conflict area, there is still conflict still going on as you say. It's much less, of course, than earlier last week

when there was all the fighting around Debaltseve, but I've spoken to the OSCE group of monitors here and they say that they are seeing shelling down

again near Mariupol at Debaltseve still and in fact here in Donetsk where I am at 7:00 a.m. this morning there was another round of shelling. And

because of that, the Ukrainian military says they are not pulling back their heavy weaponry because there has to be an absolute ceasefire before

they do that.

Now the OSCe has asked both sides to present them with an inventory and the routes that they will be taking to bring their heavy weapons away

from the front lines and also an idea of where they will then store that weaponry. They've asked both sides to provide that kind of detail and

neither side has, Kristie.

So although the political leaders who sat up all night trying to make this ceasefire hold and trying to make this agreement in Minsk are still

not prepared to say that it is dead in the water, it certainly looks as though it might go the same way as the ceasefires to date -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, a lot of questions, a lot of concern about the viability of this latest ceasefire plan, the one that was brokered in

Minsk. A key part of that deal that did however move forward over the weekend was that prisoner exchange. Can we take that as a glimmer of hope

for Ukraine?

That is a good sign. Yes, there were some 200 prisoners of war exchanged on both sides, the majority of them Ukrainian, but there were

also some 40 or so soldiers from the rebel side returned to rebel hands. And there will -- there is expected to be another prisoner exchange. That

certainly is part of this ceasefire agreement, part of the truce brokered at Minsk.

But of course until the weapons, the artillery stop firing altogether, this agreement is very far away from being fulfilled -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: And Diana, meanwhile the view from Moscow is Russia is still defiant here saying that it has no role in the violence that's been

gripping Ukraine.

MAGNAY: Well, that is Russia's position. It has always been Russia's position. But then they were sitting around the table at Minsk brokering

this agreement and saying that they were no part of it.

Today in Donestk they're celebrating a Russian holiday. People are down in the main square celebrating this particular holiday. And there are

lines -- a form of soup kitchen, if you will, where the local government, the People's Republic of Donetsk government are handing out food to the

people here. And there's a sort of rather stilted air of joviality.

But, I'd ask people whether they think that this ceasefire will last this time around. And they weren't particularly hopeful. And one rebel

soldier, one of the separatist soldiers who has won various medals from the People's Republic of Donetsk leaders for his military valor in some of the

battlegrounds of the last year, said that what they started they will end, that he hopes there will be peace, but that he and his fellow soldiers will

certainly be prepared to keep fighting until the end -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: All right. CNN's Diana Magnay with the view and the mood from Donetsk there in Ukraine. Thank you very much indeed for that.

Now we turn now to South Korea where a cloud of yellow dust is smothering parts of the country. Now health warnings have been issued

advising people to stay indoors.

Now Paula Hancocks is in Seoul with more on the country's worst pollution in years.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is the worst yellow dust storm we've seen here in South Korea for more than five years.

A warning is in place, which means that the elderly, weak and children are told not to go outside. For everyone else, they're advised to stay inside,

but if they do have to go out, they are advised to wear a protective mask and also protective eyewear. And if they're inside, keep the windows shut.

Now more people are wearing masks on the streets of Seoul, although not as many as you'd think. Seoul and the surrounding areas are the worst

hit at this point.

Now this yellow dust blew in over the weekend from southern Mongolia and northern China. It's a mixture of desert sand, top soil and pollutants

which are swept into the atmosphere and blown over other parts of the region. Exposure to the particles in this air can be dangerous, especially

if you have existing health issues.

This resident says, "I can feel it when I breathe. My throat stings. I went to the hospital yesterday and they said I have respiratory problems.

I'm on medication."

This man says, "it never used to feel this bad. I don't wear masks usually, but since last year if there's a yellow dust warning I wear one."

To put it into context, earlier this morning the dust concentration was over 900 micrograms per cubic meter. Anything over 150 is considered

very bad. And hits the highest level of severity on Korea's meteorological charts.

It is expected to ease this Monday afternoon, although in some areas it may hang around until Tuesday morning. And North Korea is also expected

to be going through the same yellow dust storm, but no official confirmation from them at this point.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, Seoul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Now staying in Seoul now, a couple walking near the city's Yongsan (ph) station, they got a very frightening surprise. The ground

suddenly gave way beneath them. Just look at these pictures. Here you see them just being swallowed up by a three meter deep sink hole.

Now local reports say the couple, thankfully they only suffered scratches and they were not seriously injured.

And they say city officials believe construction nearby may have caused the sinkhole.

Scary stuff there.

You're watching News Stream. Still to come, it is a remarkable mass migration that has baffled researchers for years. After the break, we look

at how these tiny creatures manage their thousand kilometer trek.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Welcome back.

Now each autumn, millions of monarch butterflies make the journey from Canada to the forests of central Mexico. It is one of the greatest annual

migrations by one of the smallest living creatures on this planet.

Now after 5,000 kilometers they always end up right in the same spot year after year. Becky Anderson has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A walk up the hills of this Mexican forest leads you to a special place with some special

inhabitants who live for movement.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of them choose this forest because we are here in southwest slope. So wind hit on the other side of the mountains

and the microclimate here is the best for the wintering of the monarchs.

ANDERSON: This protected area in Central Mexico is where Monarch butterflies live during the winter months. Something about these grounds

have attracted them here for decades.

Huddled together, millions of the butterflies cover the trees like leaves to brave the cool temperatures. When the sun comes out and warms

this side of the mountain, the monarchs come out too.

But the monarch's journey to get here is what makes them unique.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's the only species of animal that we know of that has a multigenerational migration. And that's why this is so

different from other migrating organisms.

ANDERSON: The monarch butterflies have a yearly migration cycle that takes four generations to complete. Typically, they live four to five

weeks, but every year a special generation is born in Canada and northern parts of the United States that live up to eight months.

They are called the Methuselah generation, and they make the 4,000 to 5,000 kilometer journey to their winter home in central Mexico.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a long lived generation, arrives in Mexico at the beginning of November and stays here until the end of March. That

generation mates at the end of March and goes back to the United States to find milkweed plants to lay their eggs on.

And that is the first generation that is born in the United States. The fourth generation is the one that comes back to Mexico. So the mystery

is how monarch butterflies that have never been here in Mexico are able to find the same exact spot where their great-grandparents were.

ANDERSON: Many believe the butterflies use the sun to guide them along their route, others say evidence suggests they are also genetically

equipped with a magnetic compass to help them navigate the two month long journey.

But no one is sure what it is about the 13,000 hectare area in Mexico that makes it their preferred destination. That mystery contributes to the

mystique of the Monarchs.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When you understand the magnitude of the (inaudible) that these very fragile (inaudible) you understand that nature

is really, really impressive.

ANDERSON: The movement of the monarch butterfly may not be fully explained, but it remains fascinating to watch.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: And an incredible story of migration.

And that is News Stream. I'm Kristie Lu Stout, but don't go anywhere. World Sport is up next.

END