Cutie Pie Flies Free

Cutie Pie is finally flying free in the heavens.  He lived for 2 weeks and was really a lot of fun to have around.  It was so neat to see an insect know you and trust you.

Picnic for Cutie Pie

Started taking Cutie Pie out for an evening picnic on our flowers.  You can see that his wings have taken a beating.  He wants to fly so badly and will hop and then land on his back.  He then flutters across the ground/floor/table to upright himself.  He is a trooper and loves to ride around the house on my arm while I do things.

Butterfly for a Pet!

Ever have a butterfly for a pet?  I have one named "Cutie Pie".  Didn't plan on keeping the butterfly, but when he emerged from his chrysalis he fell to the bottom of the cage and landed on his back.  They are so vulerable when they are still wet.  He couldn't turn over so his wings dryed all crumpled.  He is a survivor!  My daughter and I feed Cutie Pie sugar water everyday and he loves it.  He will sit on my fingers and sip.  While he sips his little crumpled wings go up and down in a very satisfied motion.  He loves to hang on the curtain in the morning sun.  We are wondering how long he will live.  So far it has been a week and he is still going strong.

Monarch Migration

Toward the end of summer when the days and nights get cooler the butterflies that emerge from their chrysalis will make the long 3,000 mile journey south to the Sierra Madre Mountains of Mexico.  How they know how to get there is still a mystery to scientist.  These butterflies are the great, great grandchildren of the original butterfly that came north.  Here is a great site to visit.  http://www.fs.fed.us/monarchbutterfly/migration/index.shtml

Beautiful Butterflies!

The Silent Period

The chrysalis is the "silent period" to me.  The time when they don't appear to be doing anything but really on the inside amazing things are happening.  Then all of a sudden a beautiful butterfly bursts forth and is flying all over the place!  (Teachers think about the "silent period with your ESL students.)

The "J"

Change is scary and a lot of hard work.  The end result is beautiful and well worth the effort.  That is what I have learned from the Monarch.

They're taking over!!

My observations of caterpillars over the years has led me to believe that caterpillars have different personalities.  Some are easy-going and some are very independent and/or stubborn.

Caterpillar Feet

I love baby feet.  I would kiss my children's baby feet everyday because they were so tiny and cute!  Now that they are older I tend to wrinkle my nose.  Take a look at some caterpillar feet.  I wonder how many?  I wonder how these feet hang on to the leaf?  Will I count by 2's, 5's or 10's?

Do Caterpillars need glasses?

"Monarch larvae, like other caterpillars, have very poor vision. They see through six pairs of simple eyes, called ocelli."  http://www.mbsf.org/facts.html 
You can also go to this site to see a great picture of the eyes:  http://www.butterflyfunfacts.com/caterpillareyes.php
This guy put his head up as if to see what I was up to.  I thanked him for posing so nicely.

No Noses!

Caterpillars don't have noses like humans.  They breath through holes along the side of their body.  Can you see the hole on the this caterpillar?  Click on the photo to make it larger.

Caterpillar doing Yoga!

Isn't he cute?  I wonder why he is posed that way?

20 Caterpillars!

I've been saving the world, "One caterpillar at a time."  as my Aunt Jan says.  Twenty caterpillars eat A LOT of milkweed.  With some patience I captured photos of caterpillars hatching.  They are so tiny!  Check out this website I found with a little video of a caterpillar hatching.  So amazing!  http://jacksbugs.blogspot.com/2008/07/blog-post_30.html

Evening Visitor

Came home and found a male Monarch sipping nectar.

A Tale of Two Eggs

FINALLY a Monarch butterfly came to visit and deposited two eggs.  One is healthy looking and the other is a dud and will not be hatching.  Look at the two pictures and notice the difference.  Click on the picture to enlarge it for a closer inspection.

Snails in the Garden

We've had so much rain this spring that for the first time snails have appeared in my flower beds.  They are so cute but not a good thing for a garden.  Still no caterpillar eggs.

Holes on Caterpillar Body

Found this great site about Monarch Butterfly/Caterpillars.  Interesting fact about holes that are on the sides of their body.  I will have to look for them.  Enjoy this link.
http://www.learner.org/jnorth/images/graphics/monarch/enh/5th_holes_1.html

Wildflower Farm

Looking for wildflowers to attract butterflies?  Use this link to visit the Wildflower Farm website:  http://www.wildflowerfarm.com/index.php?p=catalog&mode=catalog&parent=38&mid=0&search_in=all&search_str=&pg=1.

Bark Beetle Threaten Monarch Habitat!

Go to this link to learn more.

http://www.earthweek.com/2009/ew091023/ew091023c.html

Not a good year for Monarchs

We had 16 eggs laid on the milkweed and only one successful caterpillar to butterfly.  I read a news story that there were forest fires in Mexico that reduced the Monarch population, (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/754853.stm), and that is why there weren't as many butterflies this season.  So sad.  Here's hoping for next year!

Male Monarch

This male Monarch flew onto a milkweed to catch some supper while I was inspecting for eggs.

Northern Find!!

I'm up at my mom and dad's home in Northern Indiana.  I went out to take pictures of bubble bees on the milkweed blossoms and little caterpillar feet caught my eye!!  I was so excited!  Katie has named it "Sneaky" since it was sneaky about hiding.  I called my husband to have him check our milkweed at home and there are still no eggs or caterpillars.  Very strange!

Still Waiting!

Enjoy some interesting sightings on my milkweed while we WAIT for Monarch Butterflies to come visit.

Waiting!

Well...Here we are on June 20th and there are NO eggs yet. Last year we had eggs at the beginning of June. I wonder what is going on here. Very disappointed since we are going up to the lake for the month of July and won't be here to keep track. Do you think I can get my husband to check everyday since he will be here? Doubt it.

The milkweed is taller than my daughter and the same height as me, (5' 4"). Oh. Daniel is in his super hero costume. He really doesn't have a big tummy just stuffed his sweatshirt so that he would have muscles.

Metamorphosis 2009!!

It's that time of year!! There are 5 milkweed stalks this year in my flower garden. I can't imagine how many eggs will be laid. Anyone care to make a guess? Yesterday morning I saw a hummingbird flit by the milkweed. Butterflies can't be too far behind!

End of the Season

Ok. I am a little slow in posting the birth of my 4 butterflies. I got kind of busy.
We had 2 males and 2 female butterflies. Katie, (my daughter), took a butterfly class at our local nature center and learned how to identify male from female and how to hold a butterfly. A male butterfly has two black spots on the inside lower sections of its wings.

Now that fall is here I won't be posting as much on this site until spring. Please check out my other blog site, "Knit, Swurl, and Other Stuff", which you can access by going to my profile. I love to knit and will be doing a lot of knitting now that caterpillar season is over.

Getting Ready

The first chrysalis has turned clear. A beautiful butterfly is about to emerge! I picked some wildflowers in preparation of this event.

Newly Formed Chrysalis

The first picture show Jiffy in his newly formed chrysalis.