Aug. 12, 2018 - Monarch Butterfly - 1

Why am I starting a series about Monarch butterflies with a flower photo? You may have heard that Monarchs like Common Milkweed plants but they also like this plant, Swamp Milkweed. They lay their eggs on the underside of the leaves and when the caterpillars hatch, they eat the leaves and flowers of the Swamp Milkweed.

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Diana and I decided to try raising two Monarchs this year. We found two caterpillars at our lake home. The bigger one is at least several days older than the smaller one. There are many Swamp Milkweed plants around our lake, so we picked some leaves and flowers.

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Several years ago, when we were in Florida, we bought this net cage from a store called Native Nurseries. It is designed specifically for raising butterflies. We put the plants in some water and let the caterpillars feast on the leaves inside the cage.

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A week later the younger caterpillar had grown to be the same size as the older one. Meanwhile, the older one was preparing to change into a pupa. It attached itself to a flower stem and was hanging in the “J” shape characteristic of this stage.

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We missed seeing the actual transition but later that evening it had changed into a pupa and was on to the next stage of its life.

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I was determined to photograph the other caterpillar changing into a pupa, so when it moved into the “J” shape, I watched it closely. The photo on the left was taken at 11:30 in the morning. The other photo was taken at 7:30 that same evening. Notice that the shape of the caterpillar has changed, and the antenna look shriveled up.

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I had both my camera and cell phone in place, ready to record the transition. Even so, it happened so quickly, I just barely got this first shot. The brown skin of the caterpillar split at the bottom and the green pupa began emerging.

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The photo on the left shows the pupa just after it has wriggled out of the caterpillar skin. The center photo was taken 13 minutes later. Notice how the pupa has already started to change its shape. Diana’s finger is in this photo to give a size comparison. The photo on the right was taken 40 minutes later than the center photo. The pupa is now the same shape as the older one.

Next week: The butterfly emerges!

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