Hello New to Forum

[ilanpro]

Hi I am here with my 8 year old Son We live in New Ringgold PA, My son is a huge fan of butterflies, specially the Monarch, He even talks about having a butterfly club, but it is hard to get boys his age to be interested, Any information on this beautiful creatures would be great, I am building him a butterfly cove to grow and breed butterflies. My son suffers of Asperger's syndrome and becomes obsessed with mostly insects particularly butterflies, he is wanting to share and learn from others as well as have get together with kids his age. Thanks and we hope to hear from people soon

[Mona Miller]

I have a son who has PDD (Pervasive Developmental Disorder) a step down from Aspergers, but he varies with his obsessions.

There's plenty of info on this forum. Just have to put some words in the search engine at the top right of the forum.

Did you check out the main monarch watch website?
http://www.monarchwatch.org

I just posted some good info for curriculum, etc:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1928#p9195

[ilanpro]

Thank you Mona, I hope that my 8 year old son can make some new friends here that can share what he likes.

[texas butterfly]

Some of the caterpillars are really cool. I would think most boys would think they are cool.

That might get others interested.

Just stay away from the stinging kind. I don't think very many due sting even though they look like they would.

[lvtgrdn]

Hi,
I am new to the forum, too. It sounds like we have some things in common. I am a special education paraeducator in a high school. I have a nephew who is a senior in high school, who has autism, and I don't think he's as capable of things as your and Mona's sons. He is obsessed with buying records. When they play the records, he'll repeat, "side 2" over and over until the second side is played. He also is obsessed with his routines and will talk about them over and over. I don't spend as much time with him as I used to now that we have our 2 year old grandson every Saturday. Oh, and he wants the Cartoon Network to be on most of the time.

I think it's cool that your son loves butterflies. Does he like caterpillars, too? Have fun with them this summer! My experience with butterflies is growing plants they like and taking lots of photos of them. One annual that the monarchs flocked to last fall is Mexican sunflower, Tithonia. There were times I counted 10 to 20 monarchs, plus an assortment of other butterflies and bees, on a 6 foot row of the flowers. They get quite tall. I hope mine have reseeded. They don't look to be up yet. I am in zone 5b.

[Mona Miller]

My boys put up with my caterpillars, but I think my son likes the adult stages the best. He's in Japan now studying at Sophia in Toyko. He told me this morning that he just saw some type of Long Wing butterfly in down town Toyko.

I'm getting my screen tent put up and hopefully my milkweed transpanted into my pots so I can get ready for another year, soon.

[lvtgrdn]

It looks like I better check into a screen tent, as the wasps I have look like a kind that lays eggs on the caterpillars.