Here is one of the many photos taken of the Tiger that visited yesterday.
Black Swallowtail
Oh WOW! You are on a roll Rod with all your beautiful visitors!
Yay, Karen!!! No Monarchs around here lately. Boo hoo! Take photos and share with us! :-)
Can anyone tell me if my BST was a male or female?
Sue - Your butterfly looks like a Spicebush swallowtail. Not sure. Looks like a female due to all the blue on the hind wings. :-) But I could be wrong.
My considered opinion, after viewing Kaufman's guide "Butterflies of North America" is that Snuzer has an exceptionally clear picture of a FEMALE Eastern Black Swallowtail. The Audubon Society's guide confuses the issue somewhat, by showing additional row of FW yellow spots, but they are not always present. The Spicebush, both male and female on the top side are a brownish-black. The real key to the Black Swallowtail ID is the two small yellowish spots on the top outer edge of the FW.
I have attached a topside picture of our recently emerged MALE E. Black Swallowtail, for comparison.
Rod (mate of 8)
Rod - You are correct! The Spicebush are more of a brownish-black color and not this dark black! Thanks for correcting me on that. None of the eastern BST that I have raised have looked like Sue's photo which is why my confusion. Thanks for catching that! :-)
Mine is definitely Eastern Black Swallowtail. (It grew up on parsley and I don't have a spicebush) The thing I need to learn is how to tell the males from the females. Mine seems to have a lot more blue than yours. What exactly should I look for when trying to tell the difference?
About the wasps...really a bad year with them, I think. I saw this site about cats and wasps...interesting. With the Trichogramma, even bringing in the eggs doesn't mean they won't be infected. I've had those nasty things on the VFs, Texas Crescents, GST, Monarch, etc. this year. You have to just wait and see, no way to know usually until it pupates. Then that string with the larva that comes down...ick! I hate them!
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/alienempire/battlezone.html
Well, guess what? My tiny little cat that I said had a black stripe, actually has a white one.
I guess I got my colors mixed up. lol
But anyway, he wouldn't eat yesterday afternoon, or last night, or this morning....so I looked him up. I had noticed that those yellow aphids were all around him when I found him. I brushed them off. Bad idea, he is a Syrphid fly cat and he eats aphids.
I put him back outside on the bush, right in the middle of some aphids. He is happy now. On to the next adventure. : )
~Lucy
Lucy, is a Syrphid fly cat a moth?
No, it's a fly. : )
http://www.homestead.com/ipmofalaska/files/Syrphid.html
Oh, thanks, I wondered what the Hover Fly looked like. A beneficial insect! Almost like a wasp or bee & not as nasty as a house fly, Oh, by the way, Lucy, what's his name?
I didn't name him..... but we can call him Wormy. LOL : )
LOL!
Kewl link, thanks.
Snuzer,
The main difference between male and female E. Black ST's is by the amount of yellow on the topside. Male has significantly more. The reason you are not seeing much blue on my picture is that the forewings are slightly pulling down, hiding some of the HW. Also, the blue on the HW of a male is more like it was dabbed on where the female looks more like a brush stroke. Not very scientific sounding but it is the way I keep track in my head of the differences, for quick ID'ing on the fly.
Rod (mate of 8)
Thanks a lot, Rod! I am still waiting for 2 more to eclose. When they do, I'll try to determine whether I have males or females.
BlueG, Loon in that article about the hover fly, under Life Cyle 2nd paragraph.
"Although hover fly larvae feed mainly on aphids, they will eat small caterpillars, thrips and other small insects. "
I think I will stick with Lady bugs to eat my aphids!!
Rod....what do I have ....this is my first of several to come, BST to eclose.
Sheila - It looks like another pretty female! Whoo Hoo!
Often they will return to the place they lived as caterpillars to lay more eggs and continue the cycle of life! Keep an eye out after you release it. It may disappear for a few days to mate and then suddenly appear and will be looking around your yard for host plants! :-)
This message was edited Jul 7, 2007 6:51 PM
Thanks Becky!! She is my first ST! I hate that I didn't get better pictures, I was real busy that morning and didn't take time. :-(
I have one fennel plant that repeatedly gets cats. Right now it has two 2nd instar and about 5 first instar. But, after you or someone posted that I could switch them to parsley, I don't worry as much that they won't have a food source. I have some GSTs that should be eclosing in a week, they will also be my first!!! Then the remaining BSTs I have should be about ready!
This message was edited Jul 7, 2007 9:13 PM
Sheila,
Yes, mine seem to take turns using either fennel (green or bronze) or parsley. Have not tried the dill yet but am keeping an eye on it to see if they might use it at some point.
Those black swallowtails are quite lovely! I have western swallowtails fat, baby cats all over my fennel. I think that birds might be eating some. I don't know much about butterflies. we have quite a few this summer here.
roybird, glad to hear you've got cats on your fennel. I don't know much about butterflies either, but reading this forum sure can give you an education. Hang in there , someone with more experience will post soon and give you some advice about how to save them from the birds. In the mean time, if you've got some netting or tulle fabric you could drape it over your fennel plants to protect those fat little cats.
Sheila,
Sorry to be slow in responding. Been too busy photographing. I concur that you apparently have a Eastern Black female. Hard to get two resource books to be consistent with each other but your's is a very good reference type shot. This past weekend we were visited by (a) very large male Tiger ST, then (b) a large female Tiger, with the Florida form orange cast over the yellow, then (c) had a visit by a female Tiger, black form. If that wasn't enough, we had an Eastern Black male emerge late yesterday afternoon. Have another E. Black poised to emerge later today. Will try to find time to post shots of the visitors and home growns.
Our Black Swallowtail larvae ate dill, rue and parsley. The eggs were laid on dill. To be absolutely safe, we will bring eggs or larvae inside, then closely watch their progress. You need to be there when swallowtails are due to emerge, as they cook and fly very rapidly. Not like the Monarch, which can take several hours to dry its wings.
Attached is a shot of the Tiger male that visited this past weekend.
Good luck, Rod (mate of 8)
roy-
Those cats are such sitting ducks for the birds! On certain plants they truly stand out! If I can see them then so can the birds...so I bring them in at that point.
Rod&Sheila-great pictures!
Adrienne
Adrienne,
You are only about 2 hours from my nursery, so we should get the same butterflies. I have counted over 40 varieties here, as well as several moths. If you'd ever like to come by and take pictures you are more than welcome. We have a table and chairs sitting under a canopy as well as bottles of ice water in the fridge for anyone who stops by.
The Hedychium gingers are beginning to bloom and the butterflies and the hummers love them!
We are here usually 7 days a week, but we do suggest that people call ahead just to verify that we will be there when they want to come out.
We will be gone August 9th thru August 12th, giving a seminar on gingers in the landscape and their companion plants.
Liz
My son and myself now have 4 large Pipevine Swallowtails in our 'pupating' tank, and have found several smaller ones on our Dutchman's pipe vine!!!!! We are thrilled!!!!
Liz
Hey Liz,
Hummers, you have hummers??? None here ever. Would you send one my way?
Awww.... excuse me ...... I want hummers, too! LOL!
Karen - What butterflies are you seeing now? I have seen a couple of Monarchs, Sulphurs, White Peacocks, Skippers, and a Giant Swallowtail occasionally comes to the yard, too. No GF, Whites, or Zebra Longwings! Boo hoo! I sure hope all that changes come Fall!
Hi Liz! How big is your nursery? I bet you see everything there! The more plants, the more visitors! :-) Congrats on your Pipevine Swallowtail cats! Do take some photos of them and share here! :-)
Roy- I agree with Adrienne! I had tons of cats on my dill and the birds had a feast on them before I could get the little babies caged up. Cardinals especially like Swallowtail cats!
I collected BST eggs from three different parsley plants throughout my yard yesterday. The plants had spiders on several of the branches of parsley plus two lizards were in the beds of parsley as well. Did I do the right then by bringing the eggs inside my ac sunroom? I put them in small containers with the circles cut out of the lids, with tulle around to cover, and then snapped the lid back on. I guess it doesn't matter that the parsley stems the eggs are on are all wilted now. I'll have to watch closely for the tiny cats to hatch then put fresh leaves inside the containers. Does this sound about what most of you would do?.
Deborah
Deborah,
I recommend getting the eggs onto live plants "before" they hatch. My suggestion is to have anyone of parsley, dill or rue in a pot that can be carried inside. You can cut the leaf with the eggs and pin to the live parsley, etc., so that the cats can start eating immediately.
Good luck. Today our 4th BST will emerge. So far 2 males and 1 female. This started when I saw the mama lay eggs on the dill, which was brought inside within a couple of days (that in itsself can be dangerous, as ants and wasps will eat the eggs). Had 6 larvae, 2 disappeared (don't know what got them), but 4 out of 6 is hundreds of times better than what nature provides, plus you get the chance for some outstanding picture ops. The downside of BST vs monarchs is the speed with which they cook out and are ready to fly. So, if you see the chrysalises turning dark be prepared to be at home. Otherwise you will be looking for the butterfly somewhere in the house or, ideally, screened in porch.
Attached is yesterday's female.
Best of luck, Rod (mate of 8)
Thanks, Rod, I can bring in a pot.
Can butterflies die inside th chrysalis? I had 3 chrysalides. One eclosed on July 4 and the other 2 are still hanging. I thought they would all emerge within a day or 2 of each other. I am worried that the other 2 are going to just hang there forever. How do you know that your 4th will emerge today?
Ok here is the one that enclosed today. Male??
The BST's take their time emerging. I had one that waited 3 months, no kidding.
Well here's a sad story, and please don't be mad at me. Last fall I put my cage back into the garage after raising quite a few black and giant swallowtails and gulf fritillaries over the summer. I don't usually remove the empty chrysalises. When I got the cage back out this spring, there were 4 dead black swallowtails in it. They had obviously eclosed (after overwintering as pupae) and had no where to go, and nothing to eat/drink. I felt pretty bad about it, and will store the cage where I can see it this winter.
Mark
That was a hard lesson I bet Mark. Thanks for passing it on.
Anyone have this happen?
I have a situation with my BST that may be a problem for one. These are attached together. I was on my way to work one morning and checked on the cages one last time and saw a cat trying to attach on top of a chrystalis and moved it off with a paint brush further down the bar. But when I came home found it went back to the spot it picked! Will the first be able to eclose?
Sheila, I don't see why not. When they eclose, the pupa is burst and the BF emerges.
Becky,
Not too many so far. I have seen a couple of sulfas, a few BST, a few GST (have some eggs now), one Monarch (have 7 pupae), and lots of tiny blues.
Hope to see more as the fall comes.
All,
I have BST that have been in their cocoons now for 2 1/2 months. I had Polydamus ST's that stayed in for 8 months! Unreal!
Cordeledawg- I also put small peices of the Host plant on a tiny vase if it has eggs...thats worked well for me...I just cover the top with aluminum foil.
Adrienne
Hey Liz-Can I have your address and nursery phone? I love a nice road trip! I've had lots of Butterfly action lately! No Blues yet but everyone else it seems!
Snuzer,
Just like monarchs, you can see the developed wings, etc., when they are just hours away, as the chrysalis shell gets very transparent. They will also start moving around.
Attached is a photo of the chrysalis of the BST that emerged this morning. Didn't get to see the whole process as Catbird8 has an appointment at 6:00am to have a breast tumor removed. NON-MALIGNANT!!!!! Praise the Lord. She is back home sleeping off the excitement and medication.
The Swallowtail had emerged and flown by the time we returned 3 hours later.
I have likewise had ST's overwinter in the chrysalis stage. What a pain. And, we had a Giant perish because it got stuck trying to get out. The worst is when a parasite has stung the larvae. They will go into chrysalis and then you see the worst of nature.
Sheila, that is a male.
Rod (mate of 8)
This group is such a wonderful source of information. And such *fabulous* help to a newbie like me who is just getting started. I bought a Caterpillar Castle from MonarchLive a few weeks ago and installed a number of Gulf Fritillary cats inside. So far I've released 3 butterflies. I wouldn't have even considered attempting this without the inspiration and advice of you DGers!! :-)
Carla