Is this something that the cats left behind?
What is this stuff on milkweed
Could it be cat poop? I have green and black.
Yep! Cat poop, green probably fresher then the brown, I would be looking for Monarch cats.
Thank you. I was hoping that it would be something that simple, and not another pest in disguise.
Yup, that's frass. Predators often look for piles of frass because they know there's a caterpillar nearby. Thus, there are some caterpillars that pick up their frass and throw it away from them. There are also caterpillars that can shoot their frass with such force it will fly several feet away.
Melanie (who knows way too much about caterpillar poo)
Melanie that is too funny, and here all the time I thought I was getting hit by a far sited flying bug. Or is that near sited, anyways a bug that needs glasses. LOL
Yeah, the skippers are some of the worst offenders. I had some Long-Tailed Skippers for the first time at the museum where I volunteer and I was looking at one up close when it smacked me right in the forehead. You know they're leaf rollers so I guess they don't want to give away their location. I've even seen them lift their booty over the edge of the leaf, poo, and then put their tail end back inside the leaf.
Melanie
LOL!!!
This has got to be one of the funniest threads I have ever read. I'll keep my distance from my parsley cats in the future!
Donna
Don't worry Donna - I think it's only skippers that do this. If by "parsley cats" you mean Black Swallowtails, you should be fine. They poo like normal critters until it's time to gut purge - then I'd stay clear!
Melanie