Butterflies, moths & caterpillars Archives - Page 17 of 18

Pipevine swallowtail butterfly

I found butterfly eggs on my native pipevine (Aristolochia tomentosa) and brought them inside. I’ve enjoyed watching the caterpillars hatch, grow, and make chrysalises. This past weekend, six weeks later, the butterflies emerged and are now flying in and out of the backyard.

Beautiful pipevine swallowtail butterfly (Battus philenor) on native purple coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea) – what a delight!

Here’s a different view of the the same butterfly on native Lady Fern (Athrium felix-femina). In the right light the iridescent blue is breathtaking.

Mourning Cloak butterfly

It was a delightful surprise last week to discover two Mourning cloak butterflies (Nymphalis antiopa) feeding on my common milkweed blossoms. I was happy they stayed long enough for me to get my camera.

One soon flew away, but the other allowed me to get good views of the under and upper sides of its wings. I can see how the upper side could resemble a traditional cloak that was worn when one was “in mourning,” hence the name.

I find it interesting that while most adult butterflies live two to three weeks, Mourning cloaks live for about ten months. They emerge in summer, overwinter in woodpiles or under bark, then mate and lay eggs in early spring. Since their wings were in such good condition, I’m guessing my visitors were born this year.

According to what I read, Mourning cloaks are common though not abundant throughout North America. I have seen them twice before – once in Glacier National Park and once in Tennessee. I’m glad to add them to my list of backyard butterflies.

Black swallowtail butterfly

As I passed the butterfly cage on Saturday, I happened to notice a small crack in the chrysalis. I quickly grabbed the camera, hoping to catch what I knew was about to happen.

In less than a minute, the black swallowtail butterfly had emerged. The wings were small and crumpled, and the abdomen was very large.

The butterfly gradually pumped fluid from its abdomen into its wings. Within five minutes it looked more normal, however the wings were still too soft for it to fly. It hung upside down while the wings hardened, and within a couple of hours it began to open and close them.

The yellow of the top wings let me know this was a male. Female’s wings have more blue, as in the photograph on my previous swallowtail blog post.

When I took it outside, the butterfly quickly flew away and was soon out of sight.

I’m amazed to think that thirty-two days ago a tiny caterpillar emerged from an egg. That caterpillar quickly grew, made a chrysalis, and this beautiful butterfly emerged. I’m grateful to once again have witnessed this transformation.

Honey locust moth caterpillar

How’s this for a live, miniature, two-inch dragon? This honey locust moth caterpillar, Sphingicampa bicolor, certainly reminds me of one.

My good friend and native plant landscaper, Connie May (ChrysalisNaturalLandscapes.com) likes caterpillars. She has a knack for finding them, and is glad to give them to me to raise. She saw this one up high and even climbed a ladder to collect it.

Connie identified this speciman using Caterpillars of Eastern North America by David L. Wagner, an excellent resource for anyone interested in caterpillars. I’m supplying it with fresh honey locust leaves. It also feeds on Kentucky coffee trees.

I think of moths as mysterious creatures of the night and this caterpillar is a fun way to learn more about them.

Caterpillar to chrysalis

The caterpillar has changed a lot in the last week. Here it is 19 days after it emerged from the egg. It is about two inches long, and in my opinion, quite handsome.

Later that day it stopped eating and was still. Soon there was a yellowish stain and greenish stuff at the bottom of the cage. Caterpillars often empty their gut before making a chrysalis.

The next day the caterpillar wandered about the cage, apparently looking for a place to make its chrysalis. Finally it attached itself to the parsley plant (see above) and stayed this way for about 24 hours.

On day 21, I checked the caterpillar often, hoping to see it change into a chrysalis. From previous experience, I know that once the process begins, the caterpillar sheds its skin in a matter of minutes and reveals the chrysalis underneath. However, I missed the actual change and returned to find this chrysalis.

According to The Life Cycles of Butterflies, “During the chrysalis phase, the caterpillar liquefies inside the chrysalis and reorganizes, almost magically transforming into a butterfly. Even after decades of research, all the details of this metamorphosis are not completely understood.” I find all this quite amazing.

This book by Judy Burris and Wayne Richards is one of my favorite butterfly references and their website, ButtterflyNature.com, is another excellent source of information.

Now I wait, and hope to have a butterfly in a week or two.