Caterpillar CPR

[Sarah Dalton]

8/16/99

I’ve worked with Metro Parks here in Columbus, Ohio for eleven years now and pride myself on being a highly trained professional naturalist. So it’s nice to see myself able to swing into action, make clear-headed decisions, and use my training in an emergency. It’s really nice when it results in the saving of a drowning victim in my own park. But I doubt I’ll get a medal for saving this life….

I have now successfully performed CPR on a caterpillar!

We have had our “chrysalis tree” (see photo below, which also appeared on the last page of the Monarch Watch 1997 Annual Report) up for a week now. This tripod of branches set in a shallow pan of water allows our caterpillars to make their chrysalises in full view of the the public visiting my nature center. Usually staff or a volunteer is at the desk to keep an eye on things. When I was closing up the building last night, I noticed one of the caterpillars had fallen in the water and was floating quietly. I had been showing folks the caterpillars there just a few moments before so I knew it hadn’t been in the water long. So I fished it out and laid it on my palm.

-Totally limp, like a drowned worm. I poked at its side –not even a reflex movement. I poked again and thought, “Well, why not?” So I began poking gently between each pair of prolegs, half expecting to see little jets of water squirting from its spiracles. That didn’t happen so I started working my way up and down its belly, trying to get its circulation going. I giggled to myself as I noticed that whenever I poked, its head would pop out like that child’s squeeze toy with the eyes that pop out. I kept doing that for about a minute, thankful that no one else was in the building to see me doing this crazy thing, and then gave up. I laid the caterpillar back down on the desk, gave it one last farewell poke, and … it curled reflexively, just a little!

I picked it back up, worked on it for a few seconds more, and it curled up tight around my finger! I left it alone then and watched as it gradually came to in my hand. Finally it did that neat little reverse curl to set itself on its feet and began swinging its head from side to side as if laying down silk. I put it back in a container by itself with a fresh milkweed leaf. By the time I was ready to leave for the night it had snacked a bit on the milkweed and seemed perfectly alright.

I don’t usually name the captive animals we keep in the Nature Center but I think I’ll make an exception and name this one – Lazarus, of course!

[Jim]

Here's the 1997 "Chrysalis Tree" Sarah mentions above:

[monarchrose]

I had a similar story of a little guy found floating in water. I set him on a paper towel and in time he also recovered, although I did not perform any sort of "mouth to mouth". I named him "Drowned Not". He matured and flew away south towards Mexico.

[farkel4]

I "saved" a caterpillar when it could not connect both legs to its webby hook. It was barely hanging by one foot, when I super-glued the other to a toothpick and attached it to its web. It actually worked and it formed its chrysalis without falling. Oh, what us moms do!

[butterflylover]

Just was wondering why the pan of water under the chrysalis tree? Is this to prevent them from escaping? I too have a neat saving tech. I had a chrysalis fall from its perch. I took some tacky poster putty and reapplied it to the top. It worked wonders! Butterflylover

[farkel4]

I like the putty idea! I think they used the pan of water for the milkweed, but that causes the above probs--the caterpillars can drop and drown! If you just mist the milkweed daily, that works better than the pan of water idea. I'm glad I'm not the only nut that tries to help the little guys. Everyone else thinks I'm crazy!

[butterflylover]

I guessed from the picture of the chrysalis tree that the water was there to keep them at bay. I try to use individual containers for my cats until they are nearly ready to hang in the J form. Then I tranfer them to my homemade cage. I also pick fresh leaves each day and replace the wilted ones with fresh ones. It is a real time consuming job but it helps me to keep better track of my cats. And therefore better records. I am always up for new ideas on ways to raise them easier. I usually run out of containers by peek season, and start putting more than one in a jar when they are tiny.

[farkel4]

I use an old fish aquarium to house many at a time. I have great success with that method. I throw in sticks to support the milkweed leaves and then they can hang from them too. My neighbor had one caterpillar fight in close quarters which resulted in the one dying from a bite! But, I have raised as many as 25 in a 3 gallon tank. If you keep them in an aquarium, the misting of the milkweed keeps it fresh because the humidity is contained in the glass container. Use a mesh top to your aquarium to avoid escapees.

[Teresa]

I'm curious about the tree above. Did you move the cats to the tree or did you move the crysalis there.

[Keith Petrosky]

The CPR is amazing, and so is that butterfly tree I want one.

[Pamela Moresby]

Dear Sarah,

I've done something simualar to a caterpillar that fell in a puddle on the floor. It looked dead. I put it in a paper towel thinking it was surely dead. The next morning went to put it in the garden and the caterpillar moved. It was fine.

Pam
from Auckland NZ