Monarch Caterpiller Advice Please

I have quite a number of cats, from teeney tiny to very large on my Asclepsis Tuberosa plants.

I have identified them as Monarchs. Now, what? If I just leave them alone, will they form their cocoon on the same plant-or do they move to another plant?

I'm sorry if I sound stupid. I've been an avid gardener for 40+ years, but this is the first time I've planted plants to attract butterflies, specifically.

One thing I won't be doing, is growing them on, indoors-but, if I need to help them by moving the cats to a new plant location, I'll do my best. They are so beautiful...and HUNGRY! LOL

Thanks for any advice, and I have to apologize for the poor quality of the picture. sigh.

Sasha

Love your picture!

Caterpillars crawl away from their host plants to form a chrysalis. And you may never find the chrysalis to watch the interesting process.
Providing butterfly weed is great. It feeds monarch cats and you get to watch them grow. One of the major reasons that people cage caterpillars is to watch the metamorphasis from egg to adult. To someone who has never seen this process, it is a marvel and very exciting. Fascinating to both childern and adults. Another reason to cage caterpillars is to protect them from preditors--wasps, lizzards, birds, etc.

Flicker,
Thanks for responding!

You bring up some interesting and informative points!

I had wrongly assumed that the caterpillars were poisonous to predaters, because of their brilliant colors.

Thanks again!

Yes, when some caterpillars are large enough they may be poisonous to birds and maybe lizzards--not that either animal would die if he ate one. But in the egg or tiny caterpillar stage lots of stuff eats them. And for many cats the bright colors are only to mimic another bug that is actually poisonous. Once a bird tries a cat and doesn't get sick, he will return for more.
I grow fennel and parsely for black swallowtail butterflies. One day I find lots of tiny caterpillars on the plants--but overnight they all dissappear. Something ate them. This happens more often than not. Out of many babies, only one becomes a large cat.
When raised in a cage lots of babies survive to become adult butterflies ---if you can keep up with their food supply! It takes a LOT of leaves to raise catterpillar.
I taught elementary school and we always raised several different kinds of butterflies. Now that I have retired, the garden is as far as I get. The cats are on their own.
:0)

I started "saving" cats because I found wasps eating them, which made me a tad monarch crazy. I have 21 Chrysalids in my Monarch cat house that should emerge over the next 10 days.

Check my posts - the house was easy to build (and cheap)

Thank you Sheilia fw for the design idea. It is working out awesome. If anyone needs tropical milkweed seed - I've got loads and will be happy to share - just send me your address.

My pots of milkweed now need some time to recover from being eaten. :)

I also cat hunt around my house which has loads of milkweed planted.
and bring in the little guys onto my screen in lanai to save from the wasps.

I found the pvc at home depo 10 ft for $.72 couplers for $.28 fabric for 1.50 a yard.
zippers removed from old comforter bags...
grid shelf was an old ac filter (washable).
I found "floral tubes" at Michaels and filled them with floral foam to put fresh leaves it.
I also use newspaper to line the bottom (way cheaper than papertowels).


This is such a neat hobby. It doesn't cost a lot and we are saving Monarchs and Queens.

Ruth, I see you are in Orlando. I have raised gulf frits since certain passionvines will grow to tremendous size down here and we always have lots of leaves. In the past we had zillions of gulf frit cats, but not for the last 2 yrs. And the few that I do see are unwell.
Do you know anything about this?

i have only seen a couple of the gulf frits butterflies.........in fact wasn't sure that is what they were.
I have monarchs, queens, Swallowtails, yellow sulfers and a white one - but I don't know it's name.
sorry , I am a novice at this - trying to learn as I go.

google cabbage white butterfly.
Gulf fritillaries host only on passionvines. You have a few native passionvines in Florida and would be easy to grow. Check any Florida Native plant site.
I would love to go to Butterfly world in Coconut Beach. In Sept (I think) there will be an international passiflora conference. Many varieties will be for sale.

I use a large glass jar like the mayo ones for restaurants then I add branches and keep feeding the cats the same plant as where I found them so they are happy fresh stuff twice per day for the lid I use screen and a tick elastic to hole it in place

my girls loved the process
I should go to the back field and get some since wild milkweed has been in bloom for a while now so should find cats