Red, hope your cats. are doing well? This morning I was out looking for Monarch's eggs,but found various instars of EBST (Eastern Black Swallowtails) instead. I saw 5 1-3 instars maybe. I'm so happy!
Parsleys for BST Cats....questions.
Hi Lily! they are doing great...last night found 6 of them Chrysalized :)
I have moved them to their own separate container as I don't want to accidentally dislodge them while cleaning the other 'house' Here is a pic of two that decided to hang out together (pun intended lol)
Yea wtg Lily!!
Red...glad you have some pupate! One note, since your siamese twins there aren't supported with a sling, I want to offer up a suggestion that worked for me. I took a strip of papertowel, doubled it until it was about 3" x 1". Then holding the bottom against my foam, I pushed in the ends to create a pouch. Secure with pins; careful that they are loose enought to allow movement, and at the correct angle with head up . I placed the loose chrysalis in them when problems arise, and they emerge without problems.
Can't locate a picture right now, hopefully you can understand my rambling.
Thanks Sheila. Wooooohoooo! Red, the twin look so cute. That wtg with your 1st attempt at raising cats. Sheila, if I understood your instruction correctly. Your're anticipating the chrysalid may fall, thus creating a hammock sorta kind of gizmo to catch them?
Good stuff!
I have been working hard this summer at maintaining 5 or 6 parsley plants so they wouldn't bolt, and have seen the BST landing on them...
This morning I count at least 9 cats and see various eggs. Don't think I have enough plant to support that hoard so will probably have to find a reliable source at a grocery somewhere quick.
Since they are all in one place, I fear I will lose some if I don't get them up into a container. Guess I have some work to do . . ...
A.
A. I was thinking I would let them be out side. But then I saw a spider that already spun its web right on the Parsley container. I shooed it off, and all the cats are in the cage with a pot of parsley of their own. lol. I may add, found only 4 of the cats. (instead of 5) A wasp must have carried one away. Also I found one egg. I've not tried to keep the egg before, this is my first try. The branch of parsley the egg was on wilted, so I took it indoor, created a humidity tray by misting the plant. The leave perked up, and I'll report back when the egg hatches. :))
O my goodness, we are a bunch of crazies.
LOL, my DD jokingly said that I worked against nature. Knowing in Nature, there is only 2 percent of the poor caterpillars will survive to fly at all. But then she re-think her initial thought. And said that my Mom makes a difference! LOL
the twins are touching the bottom of the paper towel/container - I did read how to glue them when there's not enough silk to support a pin (which in the case of the one on the left there is not sadly) hot glue - let cool, then gently attach so you can hang it upside down...may get jiggy and try that
As far as extra food Amanda - I did find whole Anise at the BiLo produce section - they have been eating it for 5 days now with no adverse effects - the anise bulb was still intact and each had 5-7 stalks of fennel on them so after soaking in cold water, rinsing with the sprayer and allowing them dry they seemed none the worse for wear - I was totally leary of using it but ran out of food and had no choice - they did eat some curly leaf parsley (Lourdes had said that once on a fennel diet they most likely wouldn't eat anything else - but again, no choice - too many cats hungry so again - cold soak and long rinse followed by air drying on a paper towel..
Next year I will be planting fennel, dill and parsley in great amounts than this year...cause yea...I'm hooked LOL
Had one of my BST's eclose--This was the last one for this year--I have one more cat, but it's in it's 2nd instar, so will spend the winter in the fridge. I'm still searching for more, as my parsley, dill, and wild carrots are still looking good. The Queen Ann's Lace is done for the year. next year I'm planting more parsley and fennel--have a spot picked out.
Bruce
Red, thanks for sharing your experience with others. Bruce, that's such a beauty! Tell me more of the 'refridgeration' procedure. At what temp. range is it safe to store the cats.? The new residents I collected yesterday are doing well. I'll soon post pix with new development.
Last night's haul.
Today - fat and happy on their organic parsley.
Wow, you guys have been busy! Amanda wtg! Good pictures. To keep the cut parsley fresh wet a paper towel and wrap the bunch and stick it into a zip lock in the fridge. It will keep for quite a long time. Glad you got organic too.
Red and Lily...This is a shot I set up to show what I was trying to explain. LOL!
Amanda, those look so good! Looks like they're going to spin their silk any day now. Sheila. That's so cool. I'll have to keep that in mind in case I need to create one for them. Thank you. Those BST caterpillars are growing really fast. They almost increase in size right in front our eyes. lol
The BST are piggies when they eat for sure. Monarch cats eat a lot but at a slower pace.
Yes, and compared that of Monarch's cats. to Gulf Frits. I'm keeping one, and so far the 'baby' sleeps alot. :)) (as appose to munching).
I did another survey of my swamp MW. It is pathetic. :(
Aphids at the tips, long and leggy throughout, mottled and yellowing in between.
I only have the plant in the drive that looks pretty healthy. I will have to start staking out sources of MW. The other varieties I am growing in the yard did not get very big for a variety of reasons. The A. curassavica is short but looks like they are budding, the purple milkweed and poke milkweed are perennials - maybe that's another reason they are slow growing. Tuberosa does not seem to be a preferred food source compared to the others, but foliage looks great.
What are your thoughts on feeding tuberosa if/when the need arises? I guess they will eat what they can get. Last year they preferred the tropical MW to any other.
My A. Tuberosa only attracts monarchs toward the end of the season up until mid august they have nothing, and then explode w/ cats--we checked yesterday and found 20+ cats on my two bunches of A. tuberosa gay butterflies.
BTW, most of the swamp milkweed looks like you described yours Amanda--the exception being those we kept cutting for cat food--those look good w/ new growth, and a healthy population of cats
I have had the swamp milkweed for two years now and it is yet to bloom. Guess it is our heat. It starts out fine in the spring then wilts and drops leaves. Never gets cats, of course I haven't had that many on any of the MWs the last two years. A. curassavica is the only one that thrives and blooms in our heat.
I'm glad I found my 5th BST cat. which I thought a wasp or some other predator has napped it. It's now in my custody safe and sound. Also saw another pair of Gulf Frits. in the garden.
Sheila - very cool pic and idea - I like it!!
Amanda - another way to keep Parsley fresh is to save your extract bottles like vanilla comes in (or as in my case the little bottles of rum we never drank on a previous trip - umm they're empty now...medicinal purposes for the cats..lol) anyways after an over night soaking and cleansing the mouth is small enough to put several stalks of fennel, dill or parsley in, short enough they don't tip over and in the case of the large anise fennel I had - I washed out the crown bottle hubby had been nursing for 3 months and that holds thicker stalks of herbs quite well
My friend Lourdes dropped me off tons of SC Native milkweed seeds today (she saved them from roadside drive bys LOL) anyways - have plenty to share if anyone wants some for next year - Dmail if you do - Amanda - I still need to send you that white Gerber and white Astilbe so I can add to that box
Can't wait to hear how to 'fridge' em...Lourdes said one of her cats from last year she left in the container came out this spring at night - they were sitting around watching late night TV and flutter flutter guess what came into the room...
Woke up this morning to triplets
We overwintered our BST chrysalleses in canning jars w/ coffee filters held on by the rings.
Great to see those triplets! Two female and one male looks like......
Thanks Bruce for the tip of canning jars. Down South our growing season is a bit longer. I was wondering if I should allow them to eclose naturally until at least next month? What's your thought on that Sheila? How nice to wake up with triplets! Is the first one a male?
You guys are good! 1st was male and two females--1 more eclosed sence also a female
All 5 of my BST cats. are doing well. Plus, I discovered several more GF's cats. 1St instars on the passi vine.!!!
Ok, good news and bad news--the two females had OE, but the males were Ok--that means of the ones we raised 4 ok. Thats probably as good as We could have hoped for.
Sorry of the bad, and glad of the good news, Bruce. Thank you for your sharing. I've seen a G.F. really busy 'checking out' the various passi vines in the garden. Still no Monarch eggs.
Here we go! I've a 5th instar BST wandering aimlessly in the cage. One knows it's time for it to look for a spot to transform itself into a pupae soon.
Oooops, this is a better pic. of the mentioned 5th instar.
LOL. If I were to include the photo it'd help.
Awww, that was my error. Apparently the cat. was wandering around. I changed out the container because the old one was left to nubs, so it sorta got lost? I moved one of the Parsley leave nearby, it returned to the newly placed container and continued pig out. lol.
I don't know about you guys, but this bug-rearing sure makes me a nervous wreck!!!
Hey Red - sort of forgot about the gerbera and astilbe but MW seeds are always welcome! I am sooo sleepy I have to cut this short. Hope everyone has a good weekend. I'm doing the unthinkable nursing a neighbor's cat who is so sick it should probably be euthanized. :/
Shoot me now!!!
okay maybe next week.
Love to all.
A.
beautiful triplets Bruce! how exciting to wake up to that!!
Whoa, look at that big fat 5th instar!. It appears to me that these final instars seem bigger when raise with potted Parsleys versus cut Parsley that were brought indoor? Also the caged potted plant is kept out side in dappled shade.
Lily.....I never had much luck with the potted parsley, but then I usually like to separate them so I know they are eating etc. You asked about leaving them or bringing them in. I would leave the remainder of BST so they can overwinter naturally. However, you need to protect any Monarchs you run across. This will be the generation that overwinters in Mexico and returns.
Bruce.....I am curious how you are checking for OE? Do you have a microscope?
OE? For us newbies, please decipher abbreviations. :D