Lost our first 4 cats (collected as 3rd instars) to TACHINID fly last week -- heartbreaking to watch them struggle into J then go limp, then ooze out the insidious buggers soon after. One of them actually formed into chrysalis but WAY too small ... I was worried ... and sure enough, 24 hours later.... :frown: Then 3 or 4 of them came out of the last of the 4 cats. When I sadly cleaned out the enclosure, I found more fly pupae -- total of 12 out of the 4 cats!
We found 4 more Monarch cats (2nd or 3rd instars) last weekend.
Then, today, HOORAY, my kids and I watched 2 or 3 Monarchs flutter around our garden, laying eggs. When we went to see, we kept finding 1st instar cats. Then we found some hatchlings eating their eggshells. We collected grand total of 12 -- 4 hatchlings, and 8 baby cats that just got their stripes (are they still 1st instars or are they 2nd?) plus 2 eggs. Just as we did last year, we're going to collect them as early as possible to keep them safe. Besides, we have 25 Monarch Watch tags to use -- we released 24 last year
Since they're at different stages of development, they are in 3 separate containers. Things are going to be pretty busy around here now.
We also have 3 Black Swallowtail chrysalids and 1 more BS cat that is in isolation because it's was still for over 24 hours not eating anything. One of the chrysalids started struggling/wiggling around today -- I'm a bit worried about that one as well.
AND we have 4 Io moth cats from eggs I found on Blue False Indigo last week. First time raising them -- they are growing VERRRY slowly, compared to the BS and M cats. They're still on their 2nd leaf!
Wow,very neat.I do have a couple of questions though,a few weeks ago I saw about 10 black swallowtail caterpillars on my dill but once I harvested the dill and relocated the caterpillars to new dill,they seem to have disappeared.Any answers for that?Also,where do caterpillars go (without human help) when they want to make a chrysalis?
I just wish I knew what happened to them.I have a tree about 10 feet away from the garden and two other trees 10 feet away from that tree.Could they have gone there?
I just wish I knew what happened to them.I have a tree about 10 feet away from the garden and two other trees 10 feet away from that tree.Could they have gone there?
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Cuke, this may explain what happened to them:
The other possibility, of course, is that some predator got to them.
Last year, many of the monarch caterpillars walked all the way to the boundary fence (30~40 feet away) to make their chrysalids, and we found a couple of chrysalids on a fence protecting a Japanese Maple tree in the FRONT yard (approx. 50 YARDS away) So look for them farther away than you might think likely. The Black Swallowtails we raised indoors eclosed from their chrysalids after 1 week.
https://www.butterflygardeningandconservation.com/butterfly/st/black.phpWhen Black Swallowtail caterpillars are ready to pupate they tend to wander quite a distance from the plant they were eating.
The other possibility, of course, is that some predator got to them.
Last year, many of the monarch caterpillars walked all the way to the boundary fence (30~40 feet away) to make their chrysalids, and we found a couple of chrysalids on a fence protecting a Japanese Maple tree in the FRONT yard (approx. 50 YARDS away) So look for them farther away than you might think likely. The Black Swallowtails we raised indoors eclosed from their chrysalids after 1 week.
Thank you,that helped a lot.I'll go looking around my trees a little bit to see if they are there.And they might even be in our neighbors' trees.
I was worried at first that harvesting most of the dill caused them to leave,but hopefully they left to pupate.I noticed a few sparrows in the garden so I just hope they make it,but the sparrows didn't look like they got much of anything.
Wow!Those little guys/girls can sure move!I honestly think that they wouldn't want to move far,but they must have thought it was safe there.
I was worried at first that harvesting most of the dill caused them to leave,but hopefully they left to pupate.I noticed a few sparrows in the garden so I just hope they make it,but the sparrows didn't look like they got much of anything.
Wow!Those little guys/girls can sure move!I honestly think that they wouldn't want to move far,but they must have thought it was safe there.
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