the Crecopia Moth that eclosed a 2 days ago. I raised them last summer. I have 3 more cocoons to go. Have seen 3 Luna moths in the last week. 2 dead floating in the pond and 1 to garage light and 1 to the porch light. Guess buying the eggs, raising & releasing them has paid off
also had this first time visitor A SweetBay SilkMoth at the porch light
pic 2
They're such beautiful moths, aren't they? I don't see very many of them but sure do enjoy them when I do.
It's a boy! It's a boy! to both moths. Congrats Donna.
Pretty! Of course if they're boys, you can't put it in the paper bag and get eggs!
Awesome Donna!!! Thanks for sharing!!!
~ Cat
phooey another boy today
Wow, how neat!
Very beautiful, Donna!
well I did get a female and she laid 202 eggs whew!!!!
That's right and how many more will her offspring lay????
lots and lots I hope
Wow, how kewl is that?
Those silkmoths can be egg pooping machines :o) I love it when the Forbes Rothschild Silkmoths leave lots and lots of little presents like that!!!
~ Cat
none have hatched. Will give them until Sunday which will be 14 days
Found a very interesting artcile about their egg fertility
http://www.biolbull.org/cgi/reprint/24/4/245.pdf
None have hatched here either, but one has turned darker than the others. Still hoping. Interesting but lengthy article. Glad to know what their finding were so if we get low percentages we won't feel like we failed.
well sadly it looks like none of the 202 eggs were fertile. I guess that is why we don't see them to often ;-(
Mine haven't hatched either still waiting to see what happens, but my Polyphemus cats are driving me crazy, I have over 50 of them and they eat an incredible amount of oak. I wish they would pupate already, they are humongous, I will say one thing, I will never tackle this many again.
Josephine.
Sorry to hear that Donna. Maybe later. Josephine, wow, that's a whole army to feed. lol All 50 of them. Please share pictures.
It is hard to take pictures, these guys hang on yo branches or whatever they are on, and they won't let go, and if you try to pull you can injure them because they are so soft. I will see tomorrow if I can manage a group picture, they are really something.
Here is one of my Darlings.
Cute fella! Thanks for the pix. :-)
No change here either Donna....sorry. I was looking forward to raising a herd! lol!
I would have taken a few of the big guys off your hands Josephine if I had known you had so many and these weren't fertile. Guess it is too late now? If not, and you want me to come get some just let me know.
Sheila they have started to pupate now, I have three cocoons, but I still have many in the caterpillar stage, if you are going to the Jacksonville R.U. you could pick some up on the way back, I don't think you want to keep them in the car all day, and if you aren't going you can come here before Saturday.
Please let me know.
Deb came and took six of them, how are they doing Deb?
Josephine....I will come get them tomorrow if you let me know what time would be best. I won't make the Jacksonville RU this year. My Great Neice is having a birthday party Sat, so can't miss that; also we have another function to attend.
I have oak, ash and elm to support 6 or 8 I would think. LMK
I should be back home after 3 p.m. is that a good time? If not haw about 9.30? Let me know.
They are starting to pupate, but most of them are still eating, you will catch them at just the right time.
I will dmail you.
Josephine wasn't kidding!! She had a herd there. They are just a mass of green fatties!!! No way to keep them all in one container so there are cages of them!
I got home with nine to raise and one is already making its cocoon. Getting them to separate from another's branch is like being delicate with velcro!
We had a lot of fun, I hope it all works out great.
Congrats to both of you 'Proud mommas'! LOL. I'm sitting here wishing upon my stars for something coming along in my garden. :-)
Sorry the Cecropia's didn't work out Donna. Thanks so much for trying.
I have about half of the big piggie Polyphemus in cocoon now, that I picked up from Frostweed. Deb...??? Did your cats pupate yet??
Mine have made a few cocoons, but a lot of them are still eating up a storm.
My Cecropia eggs didn't hatch either, sorry, you went to a lot of trouble to spread the wealth and we thank you Donna.
Josephine.
Four of my nine are in cocoons now.
Since we haven't heard from Deb...maybe her cats escaped and trapped her in a cocoon!.....lol
YO DEB!!!
Sheila, your like a foster mother to all BT's and moths...I'm glad we have you. Since you and Debnes two are closest to me in distance. I would love to come visit you and Debnes one day and see how you do it. Whadda think?
By the way this might be a good time to tell people to get the word about the electric bug zappers, the fact that they also kill beneficials and I am sure the beautiful moths you all are posting.
I would love to have you over. I don't have a thing other than the moths at this time. Normally I have had Monarchs and Black Swallowtails both. It worries me that I don't. I saw out on a Texas website that they encouraged farmers to purchase the parasitic wasp and flies and release them in their fields to combat the larvae of beetles that damage cotton crops etc. Those wasps and flies will breed and multiply and not stay on their farms! Hopefully, whatever the reason for the decline in butterflies, someone will find out what it is and stop the practice.
Here is a mini...how I do it. http://davesgarden.com/community/blogs/t/Sheila_FW/9167/
This message was edited May 17, 2009 3:42 PM
The wasps are also released to control web worms and two years ago if you remember we had a two hatchings going on in FW. So they may have been released then also.
Peg
Somebody is always messing with Mother Nature! lol!
