Awww, bad Gulf Frit for eating the smaller zebra cats! Thanks Sherri....let's now join Melanie on her new thread above. While I'm here, just so I can share. I saw a Monarch passing through this morning, one yesterday. Lots of G.F.s in the area and some Sulphurs. Oh yesterday I saw what I think was a Red-spotted Purple buttfly. as well.
Daily pictures #97
Are you certain it was a live cat it was eating Sherri? I had seen something simular when first raising them and it was a skin that it sheds and then turns around and eats. Here is a pic of a BST just leaving it's old skin behind. The color is completely different.
Another note....GFs overwinter here, unless we have a bad winter. They come out on sunny days an take nourishment. Development is very slow, but they will survive most of the time. The second pic I thought might have been a Zebra and Dale Clark told me it was a Gulf Frit also. The weather had turned off cold and it's appearance changed.
Shelia that could be what I saw, I do notice the molted skins now that you posted a photo, didn't realize that is what those are. Wonder if the family of wrens we have ate all the cats then? They were bouncing around that area every morning then, they had three new babies.
After closer inspection since my last post I do have some Gulf Frit cats also, after witnessing two butterflies laying eggs. They are all eating happily next to each other now...so I guess it was a molted skin i saw being eaten and not new hatchling...you all are the experts...thanks for keeping me educated. ☺
I've also noticed that with the pale coloring last year with my Gulf Frits, I thought they were zebras, but then realized they were Gulf Frits as they grew larger.
I did take some photos of the sulphur cats and will download soon. They are really pretty on the Cassia plant next to the yellow blooms, hope the photos turned out clear. I can't find any Monarch eggs even though I saw a female earlier this week laying some.
Sherri...I finally got a tiny sulphur I think. It needs to grow a bit more, but it was on a velvet leaf senna. I still have Monarch cats, but only for a week or so more. I hope they get to adult before the cold sets in. We are already seeing 8 & 9 drifting in ahead of the cold fronts.
Oops....everyone....
Please don't post anymore here (like me!) .....let's all go to the new thread Melanie started here:
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1283371/
This message was edited Oct 10, 2012 6:38 AM