Am thinking this is a leafwing chrysalis as there were several on a plant just across a little pathway from the croton at our local NABA IBP.
Our weather has been horrible for butterflies...drizzling rain...and temps in the 50's and 60's. Not sure when the butterflies will make an appearance. The groundskeeper is keeping an eye on them. Time will tell...
~ Cat
Cat - Your photo is amazingly sharp! What a great close-up. I have NO IDEA what it is a chrysalis of. Leafwing? Not a clue. lol
What an interesting shape and color, hopefully you will find out and let us know.
keep us posted with pics. If it warms up they will probably go ahead and emerge
Looks like a brazil nut! LOL! :-)
What type of plant? That may help someone ID it too.
This message was edited Dec 8, 2006 7:48 AM
Great pic Cat!
It never ceases to amaze me the forms and colors our flying friends take on..
What a cool looking chrysalis!
Was at the NABA IBP again today to meet up with Phil Schappert and two of the botanists/naturalists from the park - they wanted to go look for native plants at our ranch - so we made a day of it. Very cold...but at least it wasn't raining! For all that cold we still saw two Common Mestras, two Mallowscrub Hairstreaks, a couple of handfuls of Snouts, Tawnys and Queens, a Soldier, Laviana Skipper and two checkered skippers. Not bad...if I may repeat myself...considering the cold and wind :o)
Phil and the botanists were able to collect a variety of native plants for study. Mainly damiana and hybanthus verticulatum (larval hosts of the mexican and variegated fritillaries). Also while we were out in the field we saw a handful of mexican frit cats on the damiana...probably about 4th instar. ....Ohhhhh...and got to see Theona Checkerspot caterpillars on the native sage brush (cenizo). Way cool!!! There were gobs of those!
Phil identified the chrysalis as that of a Tropical Leafwing...and while we were checking on that one we also saw about two dozen throughout that same bush and another shrub about six feet away from the croton they use as a larval host. Can't remember the name of the plant that one is on is but it's not a larval host....it's just close to the croton the cats eat. Seems the cats crawl across the pathway and up that shrub as it's about 10 feet tall.
~ Cat
