Stage 3: The Pupa

Raising butterflies is a lot harder than it sounds. At least that has been my experience these last few weeks. Since my last post I have managed to kill (for lack of a better word) all the caterpillars I have rescued but one! So there is still hope---I hope! Today, I bravely removed the pupa from the top of my kitchen blinds (where the caterpillar traveled to create his chrysalis) and transferred it to a stick like I have researched to do.

However, it was a lot harder than I thought. I had to tug at the silk thread it was hanging from and not squeez it at the same time. Oh, and also being careful to not drop it either! I quickly glued the tiny silk string to a piece of wood and let it hang. At first it kept swinging back and forth rather fast as if it was telling me it wasn't too happy with being relocated before it finally stopped.

At this point I am not sure if it will make it to Stage 4: The Adult Butterfly. I guess we will have to wait and see what happens. Here are a couple of pictures of the pupa.

Stay tuned to see if it will emerge into the lovely Black Swallowtail or not.

P.S. Be sure to click on the picture if you want to see a close up view!





View #1








View #2

Garden Surprise

Yesterday we discovered we have some caterpillars. HOORAY! I have been anxiously awaiting them since we planted our milkweed and discovered it loaded with butterfly eggs. I was shocked to find the caterpillars on my parsley in my garden instead of the milkweed. I thought how on earth did they get there and not die as they moved locations! I have been researching on how to produce butterflies in my yard and this did not coincide with my findings. Well, I should say I assumed they were monarch caterpillars. Confused as to why they were on the parsley and not on the milkweed, I of course "googled" and quickly found out that they are not monarch, but black swallowtail caterpillars. Alex and I have recently spotted this butterfly in the yard the past week. Go figure!

We are super excited. Well, me mostly! Today, when I went to check up on them, a few of the little ones were "gone". So tonight, I rescued 4 tiny ones, to ensure the ants or wasps don't have a snack!

Be sure to check back for updates on their progress. The next stage is the pupa or also known as the chrysalis---the "transition stage".

Below is a picture of the largest caterpillar I found and also a stock photo of the butterfly it will soon be.