DAILY BUTTERFLIES Page 43

WOW - everybody's rocking! So many butterflies showing up. Love seeing that caterpillar - so is it a Question Mark ?

Pretty swallowtail kittymom!!! All that blue!!!

Was out of town for a few days and got back in around 1pm. Went outside to check the cage and found a GST had eclosed so I opened the cage and let it fly out.

Then later this afternoon when I was cutting the grass I saw a GST flitting around my back yard jungle looking for a place to settle in. Went inside and got the camera. Here it is perched on some vines near by side gate. Am wondering if it's the same one I turned loose earlier. It does look fresh so perhaps it is.

Always nice to see them with their wings spread :o)

~ Cat

Ah...and when I was turning loose the GST I noticed one of the Variegated Fritillary caterpillars had pupated!!! Gosh, I just love the colors on the chrysalis! So many metallics!

~ Cat

Wow cat, that is the neatest picture. : )
~Lucy

Beautiful, Cat. I had a few varigated frit butterflies on my passion vine, but haven't seen or rescued any of their caterpillars.

EFG - the VF uses Nodding Green Violet out here as a larval host. I've tried other violets and flax to no avail. They don't touch the passion vines either. Good thing the Nodding Green Violet is a native plant and grows wild :o)

Thanks Lucy - the camera doesn't do justice to the beauty of the VF chrysalis :o)


~ Cat

Oops not the pic I meant to post..



This message was edited Aug 22, 2008 10:07 PM

2 Tiger Swallowtails!

Okay, I have a question on terminology. Probably dumb, laugh at me all you want! mwhahahah.

Why when a butterfly emerges from it's pupa, is it called enclosing. That sounds completely opposite. I would think that when they make the chrysalis it is called enclosing.

I was wondering the same thing all day today since my Question Mark is now in his chrysalis. Good question Mrs. Ed!

I think it's eclosing... not sure where the term originated. going to search. chuckle, chuckle. It is good you can laugh at yourself. Good self esteem,, no doubt.
Elaine

Nan, BST egggs (and most Swallowtail eggs for that matter) are laid singly and are perfectly round. Those kind of look like ladybug eggs, but I don't think they're Black ST eggs.

Ladybug eggs are a great find in its own right. Nice pictures everyone. Monarchs have arrived but unfortunately so has Fay's winds.

Cool on the ladybug eggs Nannabannana! I think that I had a BST egg and it was kind of lime green. At least I saw her laying in that are and I went to check and there it was. But I did not take it in, I was waiting for a baby. So I *think* this is an egg (attached).

Well heck, everyone is saying "my butterfly enclosed today" and I just keep thinking that should be the term for making the chrysalis. I've been avoiding things by saying "they are doing their thing" (ha) when they make the chrysalis.

oh, and yah, it's E-CLOSE. DUH

Well...just blame the French! E-close, when nothing is closing!

ha.... Well I'll just blame it on my eyestrain!

Okay, who wants to contribute a few fabulous photos to my next butterfly article? I'm looking for Zebra longwing, zebra swallowtail, one of those blue little things, hairstreaks, sulphurs.

In other words, ones that i have not shot myself.

Thanks so much in advance!! I could pull from bug Files, but I wanted to ask you all first!

Linda...that is a pretty cat for a moth!
Nanny....congrats on the LB eggs (I think someone confirmed)
Yea Ms Ed....you have a BST egg!!!!

Cat there you go making me jealous again. I have never had any varigated Frits much less cats!! lol!
Have a good night...

Where is Deb?

I spoke with Debnes about a week ago. She is just busy doing outside things with the kids since school was out. Hopefully she will get more active soon. Not having butterflies to post is a downer on a bf site!

She still gets on some....so everyone dmail her...make her come back!!!!

Eclosing is the right word - just as pupating means it's forming a chrysalis or cocoon (for moth). Ovipositing means laying eggs. Sometimes it just seems easier to say emerging instead of eclosing and laying eggs instead of ovipositing :o) Whatever makes you happy works for us.

It's nice to know the correct word but I've read too many articles and a few posts where the reader can get bogged down in all the terminology. I'm a butterfly gardener not a scientist :o) KISS!!! (but I do have a gazillion lepidoptera (ooooh ahhhh nice word) books belong to several clubs/parks so know the lingo :o)

Ah...and while I'm rambling on...I do like to use the butterfly or plant scientific name because it helps to know what family it comes from and precisely ID it :o)

Going to head out to the ranch - hope I get to see some good butterflies (not that I've actually seen a "bad" butterfly! ROLF!!!) Although...when I see those horn dog males pouncing on an eclosing (oooh I used the word) female before she's even out of her chrysalis - I've called them "bad dogs" !!!

Hmmm...it's been drizzling all night...do hope the sun comes out during my hour drive there!!!

Laterrrrrrrrrrrr ya'll!!!!

~ Cat

This message was edited Aug 23, 2008 7:35 AM

I knew it would be from the french!! Ladybugs are cool! I found another earlu instar BST cat too this morning while I was out cutting breakfast for the 2 I have. Neighbors will be sure I am crazy now...out in my jammies walking along the road cuttin' wild flowers first thing in the morning!! lol

I can't believe the VF has such a different chrysallis than the GF, your picture was beautiful Cat! And I didn't know the VF doesn't use passionvine for it's host plant. I've seen them flitting around my pv but I've never seen a beautiful chrysallis like that anywhere around it. I'm disappointed, I thought I was providing a host plant for them both.
I sure do wish I'd see some of those GST's around here, they are spectacular!!!! I love all your photos, everyone!!!!!

LOL Nanny. Very cute, have someone take a picture of that!!

Well good to know that there is no "N" in that word. I'm so glad I asked. The funny thing is that I had just read the word a few posts up and thought that someone made a typo!! When i'd just been reading it wrong all along.

Here is a pic of my Question Mark chrysalis.

Just who do you think I would get to take a picutre Mrs. Ed??? lol

I know this is a Fritillary just not sure which one....see, I AM learning!!

ME!! I'll take that picture, be down in a month or so!!

I'm so glad you brought in that Question Mark. How fun.

LOL...and I'm a nut... huh!

Forgot my little skipper from yesterday!

Mrs Ed, you said the magic words - Zebra Swallowtail!

Melanie (Mommy to the Zebra STs)

Cloudless Sulphur!

Cassius Blues making love!

Okay, even though VFs in Cat's area don't use passionvine, that doesn't mean it doesn't happen elsewhere. I've had them on Maypop (P. incarnata)..not any other p-vines used. I've also found them on some native flax plants here. Someone that lives farther east in Texas from me had them on another kind of flax plant that grows on her property (needless to say, I left with a little seed for that flax). If the VF show up this fall I'll even hold out hope for my plantain plants being used, which are doing okay, BTW. Regional preferences come into play...and a butterfly mom that has choices will often settle on what is more familiar to that particular butterfly. I've seen Monarchs who pass by the native milkweeds that grows wild in this area and lay eggs only on Mexican Milkweed. Another Monarch will lay eggs only on the native milkweeds that grows wild here and ignore the Mexican Milkweed. Then another one will go wild and lay eggs on any milkweed it can find.

oooo, thanks mellie

Nanny.....that doesn't look like the QM chrysalis that mine made. You may have something else. Here is what mine looked like.

Well ...I guess we will just have to wait and see...maybe a comma?. And I could not get a real good shot of it unless I untape the netting.

the excitement continues!!! How many BSTs do you have now?

3!!!

weee!!! I have 2 all wrapped up in their little sleeping bags.

Well, I just had a visit from a Mrs. Eastern Tiger Swallowtail. Doing a lot of flitting but stopped a second to pose for me.

And just to prove the flitting, here's some blur on the wing.

Wotchoo lookin' at?

Same guy, a little raggy.