My Caterpillar And Egg Hunt

[Gwynne]

I hope I am posting this on the correct forum. I have posted everything else here, and am not sure if this should be on one of the other forums. If so, I apologize.

I took the car and parked it about a mile or so up the road so I could look at some other milkweed plants. The first thing I noticed were eggs. I have not seen any eggs previously, but you guys have been kind enough to post pictures so I knew what to look for. I guess they were monarch eggs, but am not positive if any other butterflies lay eggs in milkweed. I did not take any as I figured if I couldnt even raise a one or two instar caterpillar, who am I thinking I can raise an egg!!

On a side note, I have upgraded the caterpillar's condition that I have written about on other posts from dead to very, very sick. I was about to give him a burial at sea when I saw movement and couldnt do it. Whether this is actual movement or not, I am not sure, but I just couldnt flush him. Part of him looks like it is turning brown, too. Not a pretty site. I couldnt bear to flush him 'just in case' and I couldnt stand to look at him, so he is out on my balcony. Maybe the fresh air will do him good. Yeah, right.

Anyway, I did see some eggs but dont feel equipped to try to raise them. I just left them where they were. I did not find any caterpillars and I did walk about half a mile or so. I found the same bugs that I have been finding on the milkweed by my apartment, plus I did see something interesting that I had not seen before. On about three plants, I saw something that looked like the texture of a cocoon, but not the shape of one. Each one seemed to be holding an insect inside. They were not spider webs or at least not like any I had seen before. I couldnt tell if whatever was inside was prey or had this cocoon like material around it for its protection.

Maybe I will try my hand at raising some eggs at some point, but I have lost my confidence right now!

[dzyg]

Hey Gwynne, don't beat yourself up over the loss of one cat, there wasn't anything you could do. It may be the first one you lost but it certainly won't be the last if you keep doing this. I have let go 116 butterflies so far this season, 2 of which won't make it cause their probiscios (sp?) didnt form right. I have also lost 7 cats and 6 crysallis along the way. They just don't all make it.

If you found some eggs you should go back and get them. Raising them from eggs is very easy, imo, since I found how others here do it. I had great luck with taking the whole leaf that the egg was on and putting it in a ziplock bag on a damp paper towel. Be very careful not to bump the egg off the leaf while putting it in the bag though. I put the bag then on a thick piece of cardboard so I could move it without actually touching the bag. You can leave them in there until they are big enough to move as long as the leaf stays ok, I usually leave them until they are about half an inch long. The majority of the butterflies I have let go are from eggs I found. I maybe picked up 10-15 caterpillars the rest have been eggs. You do have to be careful though cause if you put more than one leaf in a bag (and I put as many as I could fit in mine) one may hatch first and it might go eat the other egg or eggs. Sometimes they do sometimes they don't. You should really give it a try, otherwise you may go back and not find anything as the ants, earwigs and other milkweed creatures may eat the eggs.

There is one moth that lays eggs on milkweeds, can't recall the name right now but if the eggs you found were tiny and looked like a little pointed oval sitting on one end, it is probably a Monarch egg. That other thing you found sounds like something I found last year on one of my milkweeds, never did find out what it was.

Good luck!

Donna

[Gwynne]

Thanks for the vote of cofindence! It is possible I harmed this caterpillar inadvertently by disturbing it when it was molting or the day I found it, I had run out of paper towels and put its leaf in the container while it was still moist. Or maybe it was sick to being with.

I saw eggs on several leaves, if that is what they are. So, you put a damp paper towel in the bag, put the leaf on top, and zip it up totally? You or someone I asked said they would still be able to breathe. When do you put them on cardboard? And where do you put the who baggie, cardboard and all? I might try like 10 eggs, if I get brave!

[dzyg]

Yes you can zip the ziplock bag totally closed. You don't have to put them on cardboard, I just do so I can move the bags without actually jostling the bags much. I put two bags on one piece of cardboard that is about 8"x15", they are the inserts in greenbar boxes. Then I can eaily move them and look at what is going on inside the bags and then put them out of the way of everything else. I have a drying rack that I put them on, it is by a bright window but doesn't get direct sunlight on it.

Good luck!!

Donna

[Gwynne]

Much as I have loved doing this, I may have to give it up. I am starting a new topic and would love any advice.