Hummingbird and Butterfly Gardening: Daily Butterfly Pictures Page 82, 1 by TexasPuddyPrint

TexasPuddyPrint wrote:
I forget that chrysalids overwinter for some folks :o) snicker snicker

What can I say - much as I detest the 100+ summers the cool to warm winters are always pleasant :o)

Lots of eggs, caterpillars, chrysalids and butterflies about now. It keeps getting better as the fall season progresses!!! Our butterfly festival and NABA Bi-ennial meeting are coming up. YIPPEE!!! We'll also be having our fall season butterfly count on the 28th of this month. Am hoping to get lots of photos in the coming weeks!!!

Got a call at work today from one of the local nurseries I periodically visit. One of the guys had 'swallowtail caterpillars' and wanted to know if I wanted them. Said yes, and stopped by on the way home from work.

Turns out they are Tersa Sphinx caterpillars...and lots of them!!!! SWEET!!! I love the look of those caterpillars!!! He also had two cocoons that a customer brought in - I believe it is a Forbes Silkmoth - but the customer cut open the cocoon to find out what was inside - so now I have a naked cocoon - what do you call the 'chrysalis' that a moth forms inside the silk cocoon?

Here's the Tersa cats :o) They are sooooooo cute!!! I have several pentas but they are most likely going to polish them off in a few more days. I read they also eat firebush (hamelia patens) so I put sprigs of that into their cage. Do hope they take to the firebush because I've got about 30 feet of driveway hedge of that!!!

Has anyone raised Tersa Sphinx on anything other than penta???

~ Cat