To my surprise....

Discussion in 'Wildlife in the Garden' started by Sherry8, Jul 5, 2010.

  1. Sherry8

    Sherry8 I Love Birds!

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    I always walk around and check on my flowers...yesterday I almost stepped on a baby bunny. I think it scared him as much as it did me.

    This morning I looked and what a mess on the sidewalk next to my flower bed....I did some investigating and looked at my asclepsia plant or butterfly weed plant and sure enough I found a Monarch caterpillar....

    [​IMG]
    Monarch caterpillar ( photo / image / picture from Sherry8's Garden )





    [​IMG]
    Monarch caterpillar ( photo / image / picture from Sherry8's Garden )
     
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  3. glendann

    glendann Official Garden Angel

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    Sherry I'm jealous .I have never had a Monarch Cat. on my plants. I think they are almost as pretty as the Butterfly.
     
  4. eileen

    eileen Resident Taxonomist Staff Member Moderator Plants Contributor

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    Very striking caterpillar. I hope you don't mind it munching on your Butterfly Weed Sherry. At least you know that before long it will turn into a beautiful butterfly.
     
  5. Sjoerd

    Sjoerd Mighty Oak

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    Oh my Sherry, how jelousd am I.
    What a find. I hope that you will be able to monitor it and observe the remaining stages in it's life cycle.
    I don't know about your plant...but what an opportunity for you and your camera.
     



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  6. Sherry8

    Sherry8 I Love Birds!

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    I checked it before dark and it was under a leaf on the plant. I hope it stays around so I can watch it. They can sure ruin a plant but the results are so great that I don't mind. Monarch butterflys are declining and I will do my part to keeping it going. The reason I noticed it on my plant was that they leave a big mess of droppings after eating.

    In my flowerbed tonight as I was looking at my flowers I saw 4 little bunnies .... I hope they don't eat all my small plants. Cute as can be but they can do a lot of damage.
     
  7. shadygardener

    shadygardener New Seed

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    This makes me sad. I haven't seen a monarch caterpillar yet, and I have lots of butterfly weed. The blooms are gone and the green healthy plants are just standing there doing nothing and going to waste. I wonder where the caterpillars are. We use absolutely no chemicals so I couldn't have killed them. I thought I saw a Monarch butterfly the other day. Could it be that she was late laying her eggs, and I'll have caterpillars soon? :'(
     
  8. Sherry8

    Sherry8 I Love Birds!

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    I hate to tell everyone but the caterpillar is gone, I am not sure if he moved on to something else farther back in the flower bed....I was looking forward to posting on his stages of turning into a butterfly...maybe another time.
     
  9. Kildale

    Kildale Nature's Window

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    What a great opportunity to take a few photos. We don't have that butterfly out this way. Nice to see this.
     
  10. wannab3gardener

    wannab3gardener New Seed

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    nice one.. thanks for sharing. I would love to see what color butterfly she would be :)
     
  11. gardentoad

    gardentoad Seedling

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    A lot of caterpillars are eaten by birds. Some people net the plant to save them.

    I have used those mesh pop up hampers to cover my milkweeds when I see cats on them.
    http://tiny.cc/ji2b4
    Just turn it upside down over the plant. They are light enough that they don't bend the plant and it protects the cat while still allowing light, rain and air in.

    You can also just bring the cat inside and watch it turn. Put newspapers down. Use small a stack so you can just remove the top one as it becomes necessary. Fill a sturdy jar half full with water to put the milkweed cutting in with cat attached and put the pop up hamper over it. You will need to keep changing the water and add new milkweed cuttings. It is easiest to just use 2 jars and add a new one with fresh water and weed against the old one and move the old one after the cats move on to the fresh one.
    Also add a sturdy stick or 2 when the cat gets big so he has something to hang from during the chrysalis stage. You can house many cats in one hamper if you have enough milkweed to feed them.
     

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