DAILY BUTTERFLIES Page 10

I was weeding the bromeliad garden today and I'm used to seeing lizards and evil Cuban tree frogs perched in and on them. So at first I thought this was an evil Cuban frog (they're invasive, eat all the good native frogs) and I was going to exterminate it. But then I got close and saw it wasn't a frog at all. I don't know what it is, but I'm calling it "The Ugliest Bug I've Ever Seen". Plus, it was huge! It just sat there, thankfully, because if it flew near me I would have run screaming and the last time I did that Dad got mad at me because he thought I was really hurt (a toad jumped out of a potted plant and I wasn't expecting it). And yes, I'm afraid of bugs. But if this one is good and will eat other bugs I'll leave it alone, so just tell me what it is and I'll go from there.

Ugh, I don't even like looking at the photo. : (

Cat update - Nature can be disgusting, and the first thing I said when I saw what my cat was doing was, "Eww...gross!". In all fairness, I wasn't always this cute, so I guess I'll cut him some slack. Sorry the photo isn't better but I didn't want to move the vine and disturb him.

Well Mellie,
You have a lovely Cicada there.. I like the irredescent wings. Maybe they have one like it in BugFiles, I haven't checked yet. Your frits are coming right along. I think thats so wonderful!

See if this is your butterfly, "Long Tailed Skipper"..
http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/images?l=1922

beautiful shots!!
Deb

I had a definite zebra longwing sighting, and while it flirted with my bougainvillea, it never did land. That swallowtail kept tormenting me, and I almost thought it was going to land. It was by my hydrangeas, then flew over the fence (to where my caterpillar corner is) and seemed to be checking out what plants I had (asters, azaleas, lavender, sparkleberry). But then it flew across the street and I didn't think it would be a good idea to chase it into traffic. I did get a better look and I think it's a dark female tiger swallowtail. It's very dark but I did see the blue irridescence. My only other guess would be the Spicebush ST, but I only ever see those in the woods, and I have spotted Tiger STs in my yard before, so I would lean toward that.

Meanwhile, across the road the duskywings continued playing in the blanket flowers. They're becoming pretty exclusive to them; I was actually surprised to see them on the frogfruit earlier. There were three duskywings and they have this weird habit of flying around each other in circles, settling down on their respective flowers, and then repeating this ad infinitum. It was like I could hear the Mad Hatter yelling, "Switch!" in my head each time they would resettle themselves all at once.

Just wait until you see the Gulf Frits eclose... They break out of thier chrysalis, and a watery fluid is released, then a blood fluid.

A lot of cool things about frits relating to JC (my hero, and Lord)..

Upon complete metomorphosis:Water and blood flow

Passion is the name of thier flower. The Passionflower has:
Crown of thorns
3 loaves and 5 fishes dangle over the bloom.

There's much more, but this is enough to give you in this public thread on DG.

Very cool!

Deb

I was thinking maybe it was a cicada, I'm just used to the smaller ones we usually get. I find their skeletal bodies on everything, ugh! I looked at the long tailed skipper in my book and on the webpage and I don't think mine had any blue or green irridescence on it. In my book I'd say it looks more like the Dorantes Skipper, but they only stray into my area so I'm not sure if that was it or not. Definitely a skiiper though. I just thought it was neat how it was hanging out with the duskywing.

Speaking of duskywings, doesn't this one look like he's looking up at me?

Thanks Deb, I was telling my Mom how people had connected the passion flower with Christian symbols, but I couldn't remember what they were. Knowing my luck I'll probably be at work when the GF does come out, but maybe he can hold out until the weekend!

Hello all...been lurking and hopefully learning...took this pic (w/old camera) a year or two ago...anyone know what this pretty was? He was on my planter with his siblings...

This "little" guy was caught under some thick ground cover...I thought it was a good sized lizard or rodent of some sort...imagine my suprise when this is what I hopefully rescued...poor thing...

I have not been blessed with one yet, but that looks like a Varigated Gulf Fritillary cat!!!! I hope you bring him in so the wasp, ants, etc. don't get to him.
Someone else can give a positive id maybe.
edited....Well I just now see where you said it was an old pic, congrats anyway. Keep an eye out and you may have more this year!
Here is the DG Bug Files link. http://davesgarden.com/bf/go/8/



This message was edited Jul 24, 2007 6:19 AM

Hi Chantell, and Welcome in! Looks like what ya have there is a:
Yellow & Brown Moth?? - Eacles imperialis
http://davesgarden.com/bf/go/28/
http://bugguide.net/node/view/125984
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tonyweeg/192319049/

Sheila is right about the first one you saw last year..
http://davesgarden.com/bf/go/8/

:-Deb

Queen for the day. : )

Another...

Whoops.....forgot the picture. lol : )

Pretty...it's so much fun seeing all the different types, especially if it's one I don't get in my area. I had a new friend today, proving to me yet again that I should stop pulling up the Spanish Needles (sigh). I think he's a Tropical Checkered-Skipper.

This is the closest I could get to a photo that really shows the pretty blue on top of him.

I was actually going to take a picture of this hairstreak when the skipper caught my eye as one I hdan't seen before. Luckily for me, the hairstreak patiently waited until it was his turn.

And about that time the Gulf Fritillary discovered the blanket flowers.

Of course, the whole reason I was out there was to check on my Gulf Frit cat. Here's what he looked like when I left for work this morning.

This evening when I came home, he was hiding behind this newly opened flower! This is p. caerulea by the way.

I gently moved the flower and there he was! Let's hope he waits until the weekend to eclose. I don't want to miss because I'm at work (booo!).

Just beautiful shots... Lucy, love the Queen. My Passion Vine is growing like crazy,,, had a few cats of the Gulf F., now waiting on the butterflies...
Elaine

Gorgeous pics!!! Deb - thanx for the ID and the welcome...ya'll are amazing!!

Hi Deb,, waving back to you in Texas.
Hi Grandma Chantell,, how is that spoiled grandbaby??
Elaine

Hey Elaine!! Spoiled? Impossible...LOL *ducking head and running*

Now I know you had nothing to do with spoiling... LOL
Elaine

Mellie, the GFs that I had took all of 10 days to eclose from beginning to end. Hopefully yours will do the same and that will put it at week from Friday or Sat. Even if it happens while you are working, they usually hang around for a while to let their wings dry.

Yeah Sheila's telling it right, Mellie they will do fine for at least 24 hours without needing food, they are sesigned that way. Many times there are no mates for a long way, so their nutrition is built in. ( surely know Who makes that happen, :-)..) While you are at work>
Just make sure the place they are hanging in has surfaces in which the new butterfly, with completely new legs, can climb up and hang to dry it's wings. Gulf Fritillaries in particular seem to have 'sea legs' when they eclose, so If they can't grab the sides and top of their cage, their wings will be crooked from being stranded at the bottom. Good news is, Gulf Frits are so strong their wings usually iron out enough to fly, however it takes a couple days. They end up looking kinda weird, and (from specific experiences), I wonder if it hurts their chances of mating.

Both of the Gulf Fritillary chrysalids I have left outside have succomed to some sort of parasite, (just like the Black Swallowtails), their chrysalids were hollow. The last one I saw crawled up to me while I was cleaning cages, and I put it in a cage to pupate. By the next morning it was formed. It will emerge any day.

This time of year, particularly in the south, many of our favorite butterflies fall prey to preditors. Preditors (or,benificial insects, depending on where you stand), are in full force. Because of this, I analize my little garden every day as good as I can to put signs of butterfly life in a safe container with the appropriate larval host.

Blueglancer.. I love the Queen pics.. Still waiting for Queens here, with all my heart and Milkweed, lol! What plant is it on in the pic?



:-D

Deb, in the picture above, the Queen is on a milkweed. It stayed around the milkweeds most of the day. It would dine occasionally, and sometimes just sit and rest. It acted like it was really just checking it out to lay eggs on, but it never did.

My Gulf Frit checked out my passion vine one day, and came back the next day and deposited eggs. Maybe that was what the Queen was doing. I'll watch tomorrow and see if that's the case. Check one day, lay the next. : ) (But then again, the Queen might have been a male. lol

~Lucy

Lucy,
That's exactly what I was thinking...lol, Last Monarch I saw come through was a male too. Lots of butterflies like Mw nectar. Most of the time, if it is a female, she would be laying eggs like hotcakes.

At least you know you are probably going to get some Queen babies this year. That is something to look forward to. They are so lovely!

:-Deb

Mellie, have you taken the GF inside yet? If not, please do. That way you can protect it from insects, as Deb said, plus see it after it ecloses before it flies away. Any type of container and netting for ventilation would work for the bf as long as it has space to hang and dry it's wings. Put it in a sunny window and check it everyday. Debnes had a BST eclose in a 1 qt. container standing on it's end!
http://davesgarden.com/forums/p.php?pid=3743101

I'm so excited to finally see a Monarch in my garden! I don't know if it's a he or a she but it was really nectaring a long long time. Seemed to like West Texas Mist flower, Eupatorium greggii the best! Thank you Mamjack from Tx for giving me my first start! And thank you, Deb, for getting me interested, err, obsessed, with butterflies!

I'm so tickled I just gotta show another picture.

H/she liked Salvia too.

Oooooh...He's so purdy. : )
~Lucy

Lucy, she's a he then, right? LOL

The first pic shows no scent glands, so it's a female.

"Lucy, she's a he then, right? LOL "

Heck,....lol How would I know? I just called it a he, instead of calling it, an IT. lol

~Lucy

Speaking of a Gulf Fritillary eclosing in a 1 qt container on it's side... This one eclosed today. She/he flew away pretty quick, so I didn't get to show the large size, and the deep orange color.

Great to see you're getting Monarchs Deborah, I love those pics!! Hopefully a SHE will lay some eggs. (Good eye Linda.)
I just collected about 18 Black Swallowtail cats.. I put a big batch in a 12" Butterfly Cage I had, and all the rest by 2's in the mini cages. The parsley sprigs kept wilting too fast, so I dug up one of the parsley plants in the bed.

Collected 3 Giant ST eggs, 2 of them were layed about 30 minutes ago. 1 oughta hatch any time now that was layed a few days ago. I really like how the Zanthoxylum lasts in the wet foam blocks, so much thriftier than the parsley. Especially when watching eggs.. :-

Mellie~ How is that Frit doing?

Pretty good for butterflies here today.. Black ST's were ovipositing > They took breaks at the Duranta, going back and forth.