It is heartening to see that the butterflies are doing well somewhere Shorthog especially for those of us currently deprived. If you wake up in the morning and find a hundred or so people camped out in the front yard, don't be alarmed. It's just us and the good news is we are all good people. The bad news is we are all going to be hungry :-D
Daily pictures #100!
Portable grill , hot dogs , loaves of bread ,, BYO party picnic !!!^_^
This message was edited Apr 19, 2013 7:56 PM
You are all wonderful folks. Not only careing about your fellow mankind but nature and its creatures.
Arkansas still raises lots of chickens, catfish, and rice so fried chicken, catfish, and rice are on the menu.
Nothin' better than a zebra swallowtail viewing party!
Especially after catfish and rice!!!!
lol, wait for me folks, I'm coming along too. lol
Today at MOSI we were highlighting all the fun things to do on the outside of the museum - like the butterfly encounter. I was in charge of sitting in the flight cage and showing off caterpillars and chrysalises. I let so many kids pet Monarch caterpillars we were joking that the caterpillars would need therapy to get over all the trauma! They're pretty friendly caterpillars, though. I had too many and not enough food so today I took all my Monarchs to the museum where they will have plenty of milkweed to eat.
For pictures, I have a Julia, a Giant Swallowtail, and a pair of mating Zebra Longwings all taken at the museum. Finally, I have a Monarch that Mom released at the house while I was away.
Melanie
Went to the museum again today and had lots of fun with the kids petting Monarch caterpillars. Quite a few of the people went to see "Flight of the Butterflies" in the IMAX theatre and then came out to see the actual butterflies in the flight cage. I got a few pictures today, as well. A Giant Swallowtail that's a little tattered, a Zebra Longwing side view, a Great Southern White, and a Monarch I released today.
Melanie
Hey everybody. The garden is coming along, but too cool for butterflies I guess. I released 3 of 5 BST and have 2 that maybe "duds" as Mellie says though I've read some can stay in diapause for years!
Good to see you scarlet and happy for you and your sightings. I can send some more fennel seed and plenty of the Black and Blue salvia plants popping now. They spread over time but the original plants look like old tree trunks.
How's the Bradbury? Looks like I missed my chance. I am wondering if the sprig you sent last year just went dormant/died back. I think something's coming up in that spot anyway and the new growth is a lovely minty green. :)
I want some butterflies!!!!!! :((
We've been releasing tons of Monarchs for the last couple days. My milkweed is starting to come back; I even saw a male necataring on the new, native milkweed.
Amanda, as long as the chrysalis isn't completely black or has a funky smell, it should still be viable. I've had some that took a full year to come out!
Melanie
Here's a picture of that boy Monarch nectaring on my new, native milkweed. Then, I caught a Giant Swallowtail on my pentas.
I also saw a female Monarch laying eggs on my barely recovered milkweed. Looks like more Monarchs will be making the trek to MOSI. I also spotted a Gulf Frit but it was in no mood to pose for pictures.
Melanie
Here's a few more Monarch pics from today. Apparently, that native milkweed is full of nectar because they were choosing it over the pentas. Saw another Gulf Frit and a Duskywing but couldn't get good pics.
Melanie
Yeah, mellie - I will keep them safe. It's kind of a drag but it's precious cargo and will find them a safe space. I even have a giant egg sac from a deceased black and yellow writing spider I am watching over. Garden spiders are not welcome to make their giant billowing webs in my butterfly garden, but they are amazing creatures and deserve my respect. I found this one and brought it home to figure out what to do/where to put it - it was very late last season. Overnight she spun a web in the center of the critter keeper and then started spinning her egg sac. I watched it in complete and utter fascination. Court found her a but and she fed off it and then died the 3rd day. So she is still hanging in there watching over her sac, and it's just one more of my precious responsibilities.
Will keep you posted. It's warming up here - hopefully the overnight temps will stay above 50 and we can get back to spring,err, summer. :P
A.
p.s. I have HUNDREDS of A. curassavica seedlings. What to do?! Containers? I think I only planted 12 of these last year. 4 of the A. physocarpus, my A. incarnatas (3 or 4) the tuberosa, a single common MW. But now! Oy.
Also a question - I took seeds early in the spring from a plant with pods and the typical floss - the seeds are soooo small! I do remember it looking like milkweed foliage though I never saw it bloom. I have never tried to plant common MW before, but is this it? Tiny tiny seeds? I will put some in a pot this week and see what happens.
Well, one of my last overwintering swallowtails finally came out today - an Eastern Black Swallowtail! I also got a shot of that Gulf Frit as well as the caterpillar. And finally, the Monarchs are still hanging out in the butterfly garden.
Melanie
I did see a couple of Sulpher bf's a few days ago no pics though , maybe later in the season I can join in with a few pics ,,
Great pics here , always nice to see!!!
Nice pics....I have been so busy only seen one skipper this last day or two! Got to get some down time!
Both butterflies and hummers are here. A varirty of butterfles have been showing up at roadside verbena, vetch, and red clover. Finally some skippers too.
1. Clouded
2. Roadside
3. Dusted
4. Silver spotted
5. Sachem male
Hummer look alikes are showing up too. Clearwings and some other moths nectar flowers during daylight and are often confused with hummers or butterfles.They are usually difficult to photograph but I did manage a couple recently. Not butterfles but stll lovely.
1. Snowberry clearwing
2. Hummingbird cleawing
3. Nessus
4. Bilobed looper
5. Corn earworm
Love the skipper photo array! They get overlooked too often.
I had the usual Monarchs flying around the house and Mom found two more caterpillars. Oh, and the milkweed bugs have already migrated to the new, native milkweed. I also saw a Gulf Frit which is pretty common here. But, boy was I surprised when I saw a Tiger Swallowtail on my pentas! I haven't seen the swallowtails in the usual numbers this spring, but we did have a late frost so that may have delayed them coming out.
Melanie
AM starting to see Cabbage Whites out and about now...at least it is something!!
I saw one yesterday too!! A yellow sulphur the day before ,,
Lots of action in the butterfly garden today! Mom saw a Queen on my new milkweed! I saw a couple of eggs so let's hope they're Queen and not Monarch eggs. I also saw a Zebra Longwing but couldn't get a picture.
As for those I did get pictures of, here's a monarch resting on my fluffy dill. I figure it must have made a soft resting place. I saw a Checkered White which is fairly uncommon in my garden. They hang out by the roadside where their host plant, pepper grass, grows. I also saw a tiny Barred Sulphur flying around.
I also had three Gulf Frits flying around fighting with each other. I also found a big caterpillar on my passion vine. Oddly enough, I saw something on the bottom of my hummingbird feeder and besides the wasp, I found a Gulf Frit chrysalis! I took the chrysalis inside so he can emerge without fear of wasps or birds.
Melanie
Here's a photo of the Queen my mom managed to snap. Let's hope I get eggs!
Melanie
Melanie, I am glad you are getting some visitors. I am seeing nothing...and more nothing! I might be missing the visitors due to that stinking thing called work, but I have seen LOTS of hummingbirds lately. I can't believe the Gulf Fritillaries haven't found my passionflower yet either. I am about to see some blooms for the first time in a couple of years. The last couple of years, they have eaten the plant down to nothing before the blooms had a chance to open. We are also finally getting some rain and I can't tell you how great that feels after 2 years of drought. Everything is blooming around here! I counted 52 different types of plants blooming in my yard yesterday...but where ARE the BFs?!!!! Only time will tell.
Despite the lack of butterflies, the birds have been active. Sunday, I saw several indigo buntings, 2 summer tanagers and a hooded warbler...at least I am seeing some color!
Keep those pictures coming. I will try to get back on the photo trail some time in the near future...I am still lurking, just haven't had anything to share lately.
Russell
Russell, I think some of yours headed north to Arkansas. It was 85 today and the butterfles were happy chasing each other. A few landed on flowers in my yard but had to duel with Carpenter bees for flowers.
A pesky little male Sachem manages to hold his turf against large and small.
Good to hear that you are getting rain. Streams, ponds, and lakes are getting back to norm here too.
1. American lady
2. Clouded sulphur
3. Red banded hairstreak
4. Cloudless sulphur
5. Sachem male
Hiya everybody,
Well, my backyard is almost entirely a swamp with the rain we had here. Today is Beautiful, and i have been out in it all day so far. Lucky me saw 2 tigerstripe swallowtails. Yesterday I went to Lowe's looking for my black and blue salvia, the last plant i need for the hum/bf garden.. no luck on that, but I did get a few cameo columbines for 38 cents each! I dont know where to put them, but 38 cents!!! They are a lovely pastel pink and in great shape(many sale plants are bedraggled at best) and to make it a really nice day, I saw a hummingbird clearwing zipping around the verbenas.
I must have done something good last week, because my great guy got me a real birdbath this weekend, I guess he will want me to get rid of the tree stump tinpan one I have been using. Also a neighbor gave me 2 big clumps of hostas! I have been wanting some, but never buy them. I spent the morning dividing the clumps and have 7 nice size plants(.3 plain green and 4 with white margins, I wish I knew the varieties)all nicely potted up til I can get a place for them. I have read that hummingbirds like the flowers. Is this true?
AmandaEsq- i bet that is the bradbury beebalm. It has a pale green leaf color, different than the darker redflowered varieties.If not, I will try to get you seeds from it in the fall.
I am growing a red achillea from seed. Anybody know if this is a good butterfly flower? I know yellow and white, but this is a bright red.
scarletbean, I love the idea of a stump based bird bath. I have a strong dislike for top heavy concrete baths since they topple easily. Thus they are a hazards to curious little ones,yours or grands, that want to grab the edge and peer into the bowl by pulling down on it.
Thanks for the reminder, I need to check out the local nurseries for salvia too.
I think I messed up! I found out that Salvia Guaranitica is a very late returner. Sometimes you wont see it coming back til mid May. Well I dug my black and blues up and pitched the carcasses in the brush pile. Now I find out it might have come back if I had just given it more time. ***sigh***
another lesson learned the hard way. @*#& !!
Shorthog - I am partial to my stump/tinpan birdbath also. I kept meaning to make a hypertufa bowl instead of the pan. You are right about the tipping point on the concrete ones...Much as I love the Grandkids, they are little destroyers. They live next door, but don't come poking in my yard without an escort. I let them help in the veg garden. It is so funny how thrilled they get (ages 3,5 &7) over being able to eat what they pick! Mint leaves were a big hit, as well as peas. The 7 yr old, Connor is excited about making a birdhouse or feeder from the gourds we grew last year. He is the one who spotted the Luna moth caterpillar we brought in to watch metamorphosize last year. I hope to find another this year. and of course they are enlisted in the butterfly caterpillar finding mission.
Anybody know what this is?
I have no idea what the cat in your picture is, but almost bet it is a moth and may sting. If you can find it eating then you might google that "plant ...is host for?"
It reminds me of a tussock moth but the hairs are a little different.
Melanie
You might also post the images on the "spider and insects id forum".
That's pretty interesting looking, scarlet.
I saw my first butterfly of the season (at home), a cabbage white. LOL. so exciting.
Hiya! Thanks for trying to ID my caterpillar. That pic is from last year and it was early spring, about this time or a bit later, it is on a rose. I looked for more and never saw another. I was afraid to touch it,because of possible stinging. Later in the year I joined DG and would have brought it inside to see what it was... I was uninitiated then(ha). I looked all over to find an ID, but have not posted it on the bug forum. I will do that now.
Ok in a minute, I want to tell you all about finding a baby bird. It was a nestling that fell on Tues. afternoon. We waited to see if Mama bird would get it, but after an hour we were afraid he would get chilled with no feathers, so we put it back in the nest (no easy task, as it was tucked in the soffit). It stayed all day, all night and we sighed a sigh of relief. This baby was TINY..a nestling with only the smallest bit of down,no feathers..just beak and belly. GAWD! it was so cute/ugly. Boy are those babies demanding,squawk,squawk squawk. Anyhoo, the next day around 4pm it got kicked out again! So, we looked up info and found a wildlife rehabber to take it. YAY! We named it Newton...since the force of gravity was a big factor (ha ha). Weird thing is, I have 4 cats who go outside and the dog next door roams, and on Tues. that baby was there for a while before we discovered it. When it fell again yesterday, all 4 of the cats were out yet the baby was undisturbed. And It made it thru the fall of roof to ground uninjured..Twice! Maybe we should've named him Lucky! The rehabber let me feed it and said it had a good chance to live. So, thats the latest excitement. I dont know how to link, but here is the wildlife rehabilitator's site....www.picturetrail.com/backwoodslynne. She is great, and truly devoted to getting these creatures back to their wild environment as well as working to keep an environment for wildlife to live. Plus, the cuteness was astounding!!
Russell! I have seeds for you in an envelope which is languishing by the door while I am tied up with school, but they should go out this weekend. Sorry - but it sound like things are slow there anyway. Please pardon my tardiness...
Scarlet/Jessica - I mentioned I have the Salvia 'black and blue' if you want small plants now is the time. Send me email.
Holy _______ cold today. The only winged thing I saw was some kind of ant with wings sitting on the lip of a water jug inside the house. I remember reading that queens were born with wings and then the wings fall off. so I put her out. I don't need another ant hill in the house.
and THEN while I was pulling weeds I was EATEN alive. one of the bites on the back of my hand was swollen for over an hour. GAH.
Well those bugs are very hungry, and it seems like my time outdoors will be coming to a close soon as the heat comes on. Being from up north you know, I wilt like a flower.
Keep those pictures coming! Mel I loved the picture of the sulphur - I don't see that one nearby. I am ready for the monarchs though, if they show. Last year my first sighting was in April, but that was a fluke. They don't usually show till August, lay eggs and then make me crazy thru October. I hope to have about a thousand cats this year. hah ahahah .
Thanks Amanda! Looking forward to it.
Russell
And the winner is BCH521!! http://bugguide.net/node/view/521
Great rescue of the bird Scarletbean. We try, but doesn't always work out, the rescue groups know what to do for them. I have taken birds, and squirrels to them. Even called a bat rescue for one that was in a building where I worked once.
Finally had a visitor today! PV Swallowtail on Duranta. What a nice way to start the day.
Russell
