I don't know much about butterflies yet, so I don't know what this is but she sure was pretty.
On my lantana today...
It's a Spicebush Swallowtail, and it is pretty!
Nice butterfly!
I had a busy morning this morning too. Here's another butterfly I don't know the name of (I really need to get a book) on my lantana today.
From the side...
Here's a hummer that was on my cuphea...not a great shot but those suckers are so quick!!
The second butterfly you have there is the Gulf Fritillary. I've released two newly-emerged Spicebush butterflies in the last two days. There's about 30 caterpillars still left on my 3 Spicebush plants.
Linda,
Do you raise butterflies? I'm just starting to learn what they are since this is my first year gardening. So much to learn, not only about flowers but about the creatures they attract. It's been a fun spring/summer so far. Next year I'm trying more daylilies, clematis and mandevilla for sure for me and some other things like worm farming, rotten fruit, etc. for my new friends!
Yes, I do raise some butterflies as a hobby. Right now I have Spicebush, Black Swallowtail and Queen caterpillars. Also one Giant Swallowtail caterpillar and one I noticed on a Black Cherry Tree that could be a Viceroy, but I'm not sure yet. I do also enjoy watching the adult butterflies and hummingbirds in my garden. It's so much fun!
Where do you find the caterpillars? How do you keep them until they morph?
Mostly, I find the eggs or caterpillars on my own host plants. I'm keeping the Spicebush cats on my plants outside, but inside two screened-in cages I put together. When those cats get big enough, I'll put them in cages or containers before they pupate. For the others, I just put them in my cages/containers as eggs or cats whenever I find them. I feed them leaves or pieces of the host plant, usually with the stems put into little containers of water (holes in the lids for stems) to keep them fresh. And of course, clean out the frass (poop), check the water, and replace the leaves often. They're safe from predators and I get to watch them closer. I'm keeping the Spicebush cats on the plants for most of their development because there's just too many cats right now and not a whole lot of foliage left. One reason for caging those 3 plants (besides protecting the cats) is to keep mama butterflies off the plants. Those poor plants need a break to recover and grow more leaves! They do look pretty tattered right now...one of the problems with butterfly gardening is that the cats can eat too much of the host plants.
That sounds so neat! Maybe once I get this gardening thing down. =o) I can't wait until the garden has been in for a few years and the hummers and bf's know our place is a goldmine!
How interesting, I am glad I read this thread. You take great pictures greenie. Thanks for sharing your beautiful creatures with us.
Linda, do you have any pics of your Spicebush? I have visiting Spicebush ST's but no host plant for them. I don't have room for any large bushes or trees. I've never seen it sold around here. Have you ever rooted any of it from a cutting?
Hi Linda,
I raise butterflies (and some moths) also. It is so much fun. I love watching every stage and then releasing them is great. Who needs blood pressure medication with these beautiful creatures around. When I'm releasing a butterfly I could care less about anything else that's going on around me.
My son even has his own box that his dad built for him, for his cats.
Liz
I'm afraid I didn't think to take any photos of the plants before the cats got here, but you can look at the images I googled below.
http://images.google.com/images?q=spicebush&hl=en&btnG=Search+Images
I've only had Spicebush since last fall and had to make a trip to a native nursery near Kerrville (Natives of Texas) to buy them. They're fairly small, the tallest about waist-high, but I know they can grow pretty big. I live in the country, so I have enough room for them, just have to water them often. I haven't tried any cuttings yet. To tell the truth, I didn't expect so many cats on them, but they sure are cute! And there's no other host plants in the wild around here, as far as I know.
Liz, I agree, it can be very rewarding at times.
Lindatx8, do you have problems with assassin bugs? I find myself running out to check my plants for those buggers. Everytime I see one he is munching on something and it's not plant juice! I'm thinking of bringing the cats inside to keep them safe. So, a jar is okay?
That's one kind of predator. Wasps and spiders are also known to look for caterpillars to prey on them. The spiders like to suck all the fluids out of smaller cats and then you can find the little dehydrated corpses. A jar might be okay it it's large enough. Before trying to raise any cats, do some research, try this one:
http://www.butterflyschool.org/teacher/raising.html
Thanks Linda, I'm going to try it, I know I'll be a good mom.
greenie...my compliments to the photographer
Thank you! I love being out there with the camera...almost as much as I love gardening!!
Greenie your photos are amazing! Do you have a close-up lens? Understand I am not a camera buff, except for pointing and shooting. Oh, isn't it a telephoto lens? Whenever I try to get as close as your shots look the butterfly is scared out of his mind and leaves.
I do have a hard time getting butterflies. I try to spend time outside with them every day so they'll get used to me. I have a digital camera that has telephoto capability but not a zoom lens. Part of taking good pictures is making far away pics look close up with editing afterwards. I was a computer/web geek so I'm good at trimming out the nonsense which brings the pic in closer. I wouldn't recommend my camera though because it takes too long to focus in on a shot. For as many good pics as I've taken, I've missed many, many more. But thanks so much for the compliments!!
Taking pics is quite addictive and can be very challenging. I love using my macro lens but it's hard to tell if I'm actually getting a good shot until I come in and take them off the camera. Sometimes the butterfly is gone by then, which is why I usually just sit and take a ton of pics in case.
I am not a computer geek and only have the Kodak software that came with my camera so I can do very little cropping. I can zoom in and crop tho so sometimes that takes out background clutter. What do you use?
This is just with my little telephoto lens.
That's perfect. That's how most of my pics start out. I use Adobe Photo Deluxe Business Edition. I've had it for years and my version is EXTREMELY outdated. It's pretty technical but I managed to teach myself so I think anyone could. Plus the new versions probably have a tutorial. It has a bunch of features...you can do some really neat stuff. But I mainly use it to trim and sharpen. On your picture I would have trimmed it around the bf bush bloom to just the right of the little guy's wing. That automatically caused the bf to zoom and appear bigger. It's just a matter of playing around. You can also get the home edition which is a lot cheaper and can do about 60% of the same things. OR, you can send your pic to me, I can "fix" it and send it back and that's free!! =o)
Here's your pic trimmed and sharpened. Now another thing I noticed while it was blown up is that the flower is in more focus than the bfly. I have a LOT of trouble with this. The camera will want to focus on the flower because it's not in motion like the bf is. It helps if you have an action setting on your camera. I have to use that setting a lot and it still doesn't always help. Like I said, it takes a lot of practice and patience but your picture is BEAUTIFUL.
it sure is. the butterfly set off of that deep purple is just beautiful.
Greenie..I don't see where anyone ever identified the orange butterfly. The "side" view is a stunning photo! I think there's a photo contest here on DG...I was told....and intend to enter some pics that people told me to! You should enter that one...it's just terrific...focus, composition, etc.
It's a Gulf Fritillary and she hangs around so much now that I've named her Lily. =) Thanks for the suggestion of the photo contest...I'll look it up. I also have a great pic of a double something swallowtail (I forgot the name) that I took yesterday but DH and I are on a business trip and just arrived in NC after a 16.5 hour drive. Spent 2 hours trying to get through Atlanta - UGH!! Sure missed my DG buddies today. I'll try and post it tomorrow.
Greenie, I like the pic much better cropped. I can probably do the same thing with my software but I just don't on most. If I had all the time I'd like to play around with my pics I would and I'd also organize them but that's for one of those cold, rainy days in the winter. Oh wait, we don't get those days here! lol (that's why my closet was a mess for so long too!)
I did notice that the flower was much more clear than the TST in the pic. I am sure it's because it's moving and fluttering. I usually try to use the setting for moving objects when I try to take a pic of a GST or a rare visitor like this TST. I'm not sure if I did on this pic tho. (I'll look tomorrow) I have been having "issues" with my camera lately too. Not real sure if it's me or the camera but I'm blaming it until proven otherwise.
There was a post on another forum last night about a photo software that's by Google you can download called Picasa. It sounds like it's really easy to use. You might want to take a look. A lot of others chimed in and said it was really easy. I saw some of the special effects it can do and it's pretty neat looking. Cold and rainy...sigh. Maybe in December???
Thanks! I'll write that down and look into it. Today it's actually cooler and cloudier but I've been playing outside and taking pics and I was going to clean house! lol
I'll choose pulling weeds in 90+ heat before choosing to clean house!! =)
I love a clean house but some days the dirt wins over the dust. See...
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/618224/
Greenie.....I use Picasa every day. You can also order prints from a place of your choice (I use the Walgreens about 5 minutes from me) by sending your order online, and it's ready in a hour to pick up, OR they will mail them to you! I love it!!
I've been playing around with it today and it's pretty neat. I love the Focal B&W but I wish you could manipulate it a little more so you can color exactly what you want. Very easy to use!