Bird is the Word

I don't know a whole lot about hummingbirds, except for the show I saw about them last week, but I do know I like the little guys.  For the past few years, we've been lucky enough to have them as regular visitors to our yard.  However, I hadn't seen them yet this spring.

I put the feeder out a couple of weeks ago thinking that might lure them in.  I also have a butterfly garden planted that has many of the plants that hummingbirds like:  necklace pod, salvias, pentas, and porterweed.  Still, I hadn't seen any of the little fellas.

Until today!  I was in the shade house fertilizing the orchids when I saw something moving in the butterfly garden.  Thinking it was a butterfly, I took out my camera and got ready.  Imagine my surprise when I saw a hummingbird nectaring on my red pentas! 

As if that wasn't surprise enough, the hummingbird then moved over to my bromeliad, which is currently in bloom, and started nectaring from it!  I've seen ants on my bromeliads before, but I've never seen anything nectar on the flowers until now.  Bromeliads usually have a showy inflorescence with short-lived actual flowers.  But this hummingbird must have liked the taste of it.  After he ate, he flew up into the oak tree to rest.  I hope to see him again soon.

Spring has sprung

Well, today I saw my first Swallowtails outside so it must be spring.  The first one I saw at MOSI was either an Eastern Black Swallowtail or a Polydamas Swallowtail.  I'm leaning toward Polydamas as I didn't see any tails on it.  The second one I saw in my own garden and it was a Giant Swallowtail (see below).  Luckily, I have some rue - one of several of their host plants.

Many butterflies enter a phase called diapause during the winter.  It's sort of like hibernation.  Basically, they stay in their chrysalis form until spring comes and there are plenty of nectar plants.  They also have to ensure that their host plants have leafed out allowing food for the next generation.  Diapause is very common in Swallowtail butterflies.  It's also why it's so important to find a good hiding place for the chrysalis.  It's likely to be more exposed in the winter due to leaf loss on many plants.  Plus, it may spend three or four months in that same spot.  Luckily, many chrysalises look like dead leaves, so they blend into the bleak winter landscape.

I'm still not sure exactly how they know when to come out but I think it must be based on variables such as temperature, humidity, and length of sunlight.  Some species tend to come out before others, too.  Climate change is taking its toll on moths and butterflies, with many of them coming out far sooner than they used to.  In many parts of the world, caterpillar season coincides with the time birds are feeding their young.  The caterpillars provided a ready source of food for the new hatchlings.  However, this rhythm has gotten out of sync in recent years, and many young birds are starving due to the fact that the caterpillars have already come and gone.  By the time the birds hatch, the caterpillars have already turned into butterflies or moths - which are much harder to catch.

An Unexpected Visitor (Part 2)

My Io moth finally emerged as an adult.  That prickly caterpillar has turned into a showy moth.  The eyespots on the lower wings are a defense mechanism.  They're supposed to look like owl eyes, scaring away predators that might be thinking about eating the moth.  I love the coloration of the blue with the white inside.

I often get asked what makes a moth different than a butterfly.  There are always exceptions, but for the most part there are some key differences.  As most people know, moths fly at night while butterflies fly during the day.  Moths have sturdier bodies, often covered in lots of hair.  The hair keeps them warm at night since they don't have the advantage of the sun to warm them.  Also, butterflies antennae are shaped like clubs (or hockey sticks) while moths tend to have feathered-looking antennae.  In addition, while both pupate, a butterfly makes a chrysalis while a moth makes a cocoon.  The difference is a cocoon involves silking together leaves, sticks, and other such debris to hide the pupa.  Butterflies don't do that; they tend to rely on their chrysalis looking like part of a plant to disguise it.  Scientists also believe that moths evolved before butterflies.  Either way, they all start as caterpillars which can be unique and fun to raise!

The Sarasota Orchid Society Show and Sale

Well, Mom and I ventured southward yesterday to attend the Sarasota Orchid Society's annual show and sale.  It was definitely one of the better ones I've attended.  There were several vendors I had never shopped before and there seemed to be a better variety of orchids for sale.

I try to start by doing one loop to take everything in before I buy something.  This can be dangerous though, as orchids can sell fast.  Case in point - there was a beautiful orchid at one vendor's table that I knew I wanted.  He had about five or six of them so I thought I'd get it the next time around if there wasn't anything else I wanted to buy.  By the time I came around, he was selling one to the lady in front of me and there were only two left on the table.  There was only one left after I bought mine!  The orchid is named Blc. Young Kong 'Sun #16'.  Here's a picture of the one I purchased.



 

Another case in point was over a plant Mom purchased.  She was looking at a Phalaenopsis; the only type of orchid she grows.  This one had very unusual markings on it.  I picked it up to check the price only to have the older couple next to me say they were looking at that one too.  I told them the one next to it was just like it (it was) but they ended up wandering off anyway.  You can't hesitate in the orchid world - there are too many people interested in the same thing!  Here's the orchid Mom picked out.

 

Mom also fell in love with a Cattleya walkeriana var. semi alba that was in one of the displays.  The grower whose display it was didn't have any for sale and he said the ones at his greenhouse were all purple as opposed to white with a purple lip (the kind Mom liked).  I managed to find one on eBay when I got home and it is now her birthday present.

 

Another fortunate incident happened when Mom noted a flower and said how pretty it was.  I looked at the name tag which read Brassavola 'Little Stars'.  I realized this was the plant we both won in the orchid meeting raffle back in November.  She was excited to know she already owned it.  Ours are still babies and won't bloom for a while, but it's good she likes the look of it!

 

I generally gravitate toward the floofy cattleyas and the larger vandas, but I really wanted to look beyond those this time and make sure I got a good look at some of the other varieties of orchids.  Good thing I did, too!  I found an orchid called Bolopetalum Midnight Blue 'Cardinal's Roost'.  It's not in bloom or I would show you a picture.  I saw this one over at my friend Jim's house and I've been wanting one ever since.  It was a good thing I had my eyes open wide or I might have missed it!  Sometimes you just have to take your time and really look through everything; kind of like when I go to a flea market or antique store.  You never know where the treasures might be hiding.

 

I also got a cute little hanging orchid called Neostylis 'Lou Sneary' Bluebird.  It smells really good for being such a small orchid.  Here's a couple of pictures of it - one of the whole plant and a close-up of the bloom.

 

The show was really popular; we had people waiting for our parking space as soon as we left.  It was held at the Municipal Auditorium in Sarasota, a rather large venue with what I thought was lots of parking.  Never underestimate the orchid crowd, I suppose.  I should know by now how passionate we all can get.  Our own society is having our show and sale the first weekend in March so I have that to look forward to. 
 

Lastly, I'll leave you with a look at a cute little orchid I bought called Tolumnia Pralor 'Genting'.  It's a small orchid, but I love the mix of colors on the bloom.





An unexpected visitor

First, let me say that I'm once again volunteering at the Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI) in the butterfly exhibit.  I had to quit due to my health about two years ago, but since I've started my thyroid medicine I've felt so much better I wanted to volunteer again.

Today at MOSI was pretty slow; I didn't find any caterpillars.  Once I got home, I watered the orchids, then decided to take a walk around the yard.  I checked the Privet Cassia (Senna ligustrina) for sulphur caterpillars.  Instead, I found a cool-looking moth caterpillar!

I thought I knew what it was, but decided to look it up in my book to be sure.  Indeed, I was right - it was an Io Moth caterpillar.  All those little stingers are very painful so don't touch these guys!  My brother says they look like they're covered in sandspurs; I suppose they do.  That should be a warning!

Io Moths eat a large variety of food, including:  aspen, birch, cherry, clover, elm, hackberry, hibiscus, oak, poplar, sassafras, willow, and wisteria.  They'll even eat grasses including corn and many other plants.  I included some senna in its cage even though I'm not sure that's what it was eating.  I also placed some wisteria in the cage in case it wouldn't eat the senna.  There's a large oak tree above the senna and wisteria so it's possible it was in the tree to begin with.

Butterflies are showier, but moths can be just as fun to raise.  Plus, some of the larger moths can be just as beautiful as a butterfly.  If everything goes well, I'll show you guys in a little while just how pretty this moth is.  Until then, do a google image search if you're curious.

The Orchid People go to Apopka

I confessed a while ago that I now consider myself to be one of those "orchid people".  There are still levels of which I am at the lower end of, but I feel I can include myself in the club.  One website I am on constantly is davesgarden.com which has a forum dedicated to orchids.  There are some nice people on there and several are from Florida.

Apparently, some of them have met up before and taken a trip over to Apopka.  Why Apopka?  Because that's where the orchid growers are.  And you can buy orchids dirt cheap (but bring cash).  A few weeks ago they started planning another trip, and despite all my health and anxiety problems, I agreed to tag along.

Fortunately, I met some great people from the online forum.  I rode along with Jim, whom I had previously met.  We hooked up with Jean and her husband Brian, and Laurel and her husband Steve.  Our first stop was appropriately named "First Orchids".  They had named vandas for $12, no ID cattleyas for $10 and a variety of other orchids.  Jean met up with us first and we convinced her to take a chance on a vanda; she was afraid she would kill it but I'm sure she'll do fine.

We then went to a restaurant called "The Catfish Place" where we met up with Laurel.  Their special on Wednesdays is popcorn shrimp so I was even happier than when I was buying orchids.  I love shrimp!  We had a good time eating, talking, and getting to know each other better.

After that we went to Chapman's Orchids.  I blame them for my current addiction.  I bought my first vanda from them at a USF Plant Sale.  It's been downhill from there, LOL!  His vanda stock was fairly low, but I found a cattleya I fell in love with (picture below), and he gave us all free cuttings of Dendrobium keithii. 

Finally, we ended up at Krull-Smith orchids.  They have some beautiful cattleya hybrids so I knew I'd be in trouble.  I bought four, along with a Phal for Mom, a Paph for me, and a Dendrobium with a spectacular purple color.  I put them in a big box that I had to maneuver around so it would fit in Jim's truck.

It was getting late (and cool) by then so we all said goodbye and got back on the road.  My feet were hurting and I knew I was going to be sore the next day (from the fibromyalgia).  But it was okay because I had a wonderful day, acquired some new orchids, and met some new friends.


Here's Blc. Taiwan Queen 'Golden Monkey'.  I saw it sitting in the front of Chapman's and figured he wouldn't sell it.  I managed to find some more in the back that weren't blooming and he sold one to me for $15!  By the way, it smells as wonderful as it looks!

 

Here's a couple of Chapman's "stud plants" that he won't sell.  I could still drool and take pictures, though.

 

 

The Paph I bought wasn't in bloom, but here's the sample plant of what it will look like.

Silver Spotted Skippers

Exciting news from Melanie's garden!  For only the second time, I have a Silver Spotted Skipper caterpillar on my False Indigo (Amorpha fruticosa).  Silver Spotted Skippers are really common north of here; I saw a ton while vacationing in West Virginia.  However, I've never seen an adult butterfly in my garden and like I said, this is only the second time I've had caterpillars.

Skippers in general like to build shelters and this one is no exception.  I actually found him because I noticed all the leaves silked together on my plant.  The orange spot is located on his head so you know which end is which.

 

 

I get plenty of Long-Tailed Skippers and Dorantes Skippers in my yard so it's important to know the difference.  I had the opportunity to have both caterpillars at one time.  The Silver Spotted Skipper is on the left.  You can see that he has two orange spots on his head.  That's a giveaway for this particular caterpillar.  Of course, you should always take into account what plant you find the caterpillar on.  While they can look similar, some use vastly different host plants.  There are two caterpillars that use False Indigo as a host, but only one is a skipper.

 

 

And of course, there's the adult stage when they turn into a beautiful butterfly.  Skippers aren't always what people think of as typical butterflies, but they comprise a huge percentage of butterflies on this earth.  It's thought that skippers were the first to break away from the moth family as evolution occurred.  Some people mistake skippers for moths, but they are indeed butterflies.

 





Polydamas and Pipevine

Dad was working outside the other day and found some caterpillars on my pipevine.  Of course, he neglected to tell me until it was almost dark.  He did take pictures so I could tell they were Polydamas Swallowtails. 

The next morning (or afternoon, I sleep in late) I went to gather them up.  I was glad to see them because when I first bought this pipevine, it killed all my Polydamas caterpillars.  Apparently, it had some kind of insecticide on it.  But a few weeks later and much new growth, it is able to raise healthy caterpillars.  It's a Dutchman's Pipevine, which I tend not to use, but I had run out of my Trilobed Pipevine and all I could buy was the Dutchman's. 

The reason I prefer Trilobed Pipevine is because you can raise both Polydamas and Pipevine Swallowtails on it.  Pipvine Swallowtails cannot tolerate the tropical pipevines and will die if you attempt to raise them on it.  I think the tropical pipevines have more of the toxin in them that makes the caterpillars taste bad and that the Pipevine Swallowtails cannot handle it.  Also, Polydamas Swallowtails are native to more southern areas of the Americas whereas Pipevine Swallowtails are limited to North America.  Therefore, they evolved eating different species of pipevines.  That being said, I have found that you can switch Polydamas from one to the other with no problem.

Polydamas are fun to raise because they have a near 100% survival rate in captivity.  The pipevine can be a bit smelly, but that goes with the territory.  They're also very cooperative as demonstrator caterpillars.  When I give caterpillar talks, I often use Polydamas as my partner.  I can show off they're defensive coloring of dark brown and orange, I squish them until they show off their osmeterium (stinkhorns), I can talk about tubercles, and they're just fun to pet.  It's also a good lesson in showing kids that if something looks like you shouldn't touch it, you probably shouldn't unless you're certain of what it is.

The Florida Butterfly Orchid

A couple of years ago I went hiking in a local park in order to find tillandsias - a type of bromeliad of which Spanish moss is the best known example.  I love seeing plants in their natural environment.  I was a little surprised while I was there to see an odd plant growing on a tree.  It had bulbs attached to the tree and long, strap-like leaves jutting out.  After posting some pictures on davesgarden.com, I found out that I had discovered a Florida Butterfly Orchid.

I've only ever seen two orchids in the wild, the abovementioned and the Rose Pogonia.  Unfortunately, many of Florida's orchids have disappeared due to poaching combined with the many hurricanes we've had over the past few years.

Since I've gotten to know a little more about orchids lately, I know that what I found is scientifically known as Encyclia tampensis.  Last week, I returned to the site where I had previously found one because I knew this is the time of year they bloom.  I was really hoping to see one in bloom; instead, I found four!  Dad was with me and now he knows what they look like, as well.  I hope they stay there for future generations.  You can buy them legally from many orchid growers so there is no reason to take one from the wild. 

The orchid attaches its roots to the tree simply for stability; it does not leech any nutrients from the tree.  The flowers are rather subtle as you can see, but much appreciated by orchid enthusiasts.

The orchid house (part 2)

Well, the orchid house is now almost complete thanks to lots of hard work from Dad.  First, he had to put the posts in and build the frame.  This required a lot of measuring, which I helped with.

Then the top and bottom supports were connected to each post.  This part was all Dad; Melanie's arms hurt too much right now to be lifting 2x4s.

Then Dad put in some rafters and additional posts for added strength.  I don't want the first good hurricane to knock this thing down.

Then, Dad added the lattice around each side.  The part that's missing is where the door is going to be.  I can hang lots of orchids from the lattice.

Finally, Dad put screen around the whole enclosure, apart from the door, and laid down weedblock for the floor.  The guy at Home Depot suggested using roofing nails with the little tabs to secure the screen; Dad thought that was a good idea.

Finally, the orchids have a home!  I still have to add shelving for my potted orchids and a screen door, but for the most part the orchid house is complete.

The orchid house (part 1)

I've already admitted to joining the orchid people.  Well, the craziness has set in because now I want an orchid house.  It's not a greenhouse; here in Florida they need more of a shade house.  It's basically going to be an 8x8 foot building covered in screen.  It will have lattice on all sides for hanging orchids and shelves inside to set the potted orchids on.

Dad and I went to Home Depot to get the materials.

First, we had to clear a spot for the orchid house.  My raised beds were moved closer to the butterfly garden.  Also, some of the bromeliads had to be moved.  They're pretty portable - just watch out for the spines!

Dad's wood pile had to move, as well.  Dad's a woodturner and we always have tons of different kinds of wood around.  My orchid friends say that sounds great if I want to mount my orchids on some of the wood.

Finally, the area was cleared and ready for the building to begin.  Dad had overdone it by this point and had to rest.  Next step is using the post hole diggers to put the main posts in!

Melanie joins the Orchid People

Normally, I stay away from orchid people.  They're kind of insane.  Like, at plant sales, it's best just to let them go ahead and run like crazy toward the booths.  You don't want to get in their way because they will trample you.  However, I've inadvertently become one of them.

I'm already crazy about butterflies and bromeliads, but I do enjoy other plants.  So last month I thought it might be good to get out of the house (like my therapist says) and go to the Tampa Bay Orchid Society's show and sale.  We have a few orchids and I thought it might be fun to get some more and see all the other pretty varieties.  What I didn't expect was Mom signing us up to join the society.  I'm still unclear on why she did this, but she did.

I thought this might be a good opportunity though, since my therapist says I need to get out and socialize.  Plant people are good people.  Gardeners are very generous.  So last Thursday, Mom and I went to our first meeting.  First off, these people know how to eat!  Everyone brings a dish and they chow down for the first part of the meeting.  They have show and tell and lots of raffle prizes.  They had a very informative talk on bifoliate cattleyas and I learned a lot about other genera, as well.  Everyone was really nice and made us feel welcome.  The only bad part was that I have been bitten by the orchid bug.

So far I find I can limit myself to vanda and cattleya orchids.  I had a few to begin with and I've managed not to kill them.  Okay, I froze a couple of vandas, but I didn't know how tender they were.  I didn't know!

Even by limiting myself to two major families of orchids, I find I can still get myself into trouble.  This weekend Dad and I went to the Green Thumb festival in St. Pete.  I bought myself a nice new collection of orchids.  I spent too much money on orchids.  I think about orchids during the day.  I look at orchids online.  I have Dad planning to build me a greenhouse for my orchids.  I've become - one of the orchid people!

Here's one of my favorites that I bought at the festival.  It's a vanda orchid.  There was another vanda from the same cross as this one but it was a registered orchid and it was selling for $250!  I got this one for $30.  Maybe I haven't gone full-on crazy yet.

Melanie shops for plants

Yes, I know I just went to the USF Plant Sale but this time of year there is something going on nearly every weekend.  This Saturday there were two events I wanted to attend:  the open house at St. Pete Orchid Farm and the show and sale by the Bromeliad Guild.

Dad and I started the day at Panera for breakfast because plant buying can use up a lot of energy.  Then, we headed over the bridge to St. Pete where St. Pete Orchid Farm (www.stpeteorchidfarm.com) was having their annual open house.  The place is a guy's residence and he has four greenhouses in the back.  They specialize in the genus Encyclia, but you can find all sorts of orchids there.  I picked up four myself.  Check out the pretty pictures below!

See, aren't they pretty?  After the orchid place took most of my money, I took what cash I had left and headed to the Tampa Bay Garden Club.  The Bromeliad Guild was having their annual show and sale, but there were other vendors, as well.  Dad talked to the raw honey people about wood while I shopped.  The Bromeliad Guild were the same people that were at the USF Plant Sale but they did have quite a different selection this week.  One of my favorites has to be this Neoregelia "Flame".

There was a guy selling herbs 3 for $5 so I bought three bronze fennel plants.  It's a host plant for the Eastern Black Swallowtail caterpillar.  (And you thought I wasn't going to talk about butterflies this time!)  I love getting good deals!

Unfortunately, Melanie started feeling light-headed and dizzy so we had to stop chatting up the bee people and go home.  But not before I got my plants!

Predators strike again

Lots of caterpillars are poisonous if you eat them.  That's sort of the point - to keep birds from eating them.  Unfortunately, birds aren't the only predators as I discovered.  I've talked about parasitic wasps before but this time there was a different insect to blame - the assassin bug.

I know what assassin bugs look like, but the one in my yard was still in the nymph stage (not yet an adult) so I was a little confused.  Either way, they can be deadly for caterpillars.  They inject a poison that paralyzes their prey and then they basically suck the juices out of it.  As you can see in the picture, that's what happened to my poor Monarch caterpillar.  All that coloration warning was for nothing against a fellow insect.  If it makes you feel better, I squished the sucker after I took the photo.

I'm currently raising about a dozen Monarch cats and there are still plenty of eggs on my milkweed.  Remember, only about 1% of all eggs make it to the adult stage.  I, of course, have much higher numbers.  In fact, with the swarm of Monarchs around my house, as well as the other butterflies, my house looks like something out of a Disney movie.  It's kind of crazy, but in a good way.

The USF Spring Plant Festival

It's that time of year again!  Time for the plant festivals and sales; one of the best being at the University of South Florida's Botanical Gardens.  As many of you know, I suffer from fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue so I made sure to rest up for this big day.  I came home exhausted, but it was totally worth it.  Plant sale pros know to bring their own carts because you don't want to be carrying around a bunch of plants.  Plus, people only have two hands and I buy far more than two plants!  Mom and I have got a routine down that works for us.  Namely, I run for the bromeliads first while she follows.  Then, we head over to the African Violets.  Everything after that is optional.

The best thing about the USF sale is that many of the vendors are clubs or plant societies.  My favorite booth is the Bromeliad Guild.  They always have plants you would never find elsewhere and their prices are more than fair.  There's also the Bromeliad Society of Tampa Bay, but I don't usually buy as much from them.  Personal preference I guess.  Here's a neat picture of an Aechmea bromeliad I purchased.

And here's a couple more I picked up at the Bromeliad Guild.  They're having their own sale and show next weekend and you know I will be attending!  Expect to see a new blog entry about it next week.

After I make my run to the bromeliads, Mom makes her dash over to the African Violet Society.  I wait with the cart while she selects the prettiest ones to come home with her.  Here they are, already at home in her bathroom.

But one of the best aspects of plant sales is that you never know what you might find.  The Florida Native Plant Society always does a great job of providing an array of native trees, shrubs, and flowers.  Most of the plants that host my caterpillars are natives so I've bought a lot from them in the past.  Today, I was looking for a Red Bay tree for my Spicebush caterpillars, but no luck.  Surprisingly, they finally had a Sweetbay Magnolia, but as you know I already bought one a couple of weeks ago.  Mine is a lot bigger, too.

There's a certain vendor I won't name who sells overpriced, hybridized passion vines.  Then, if you ask about native varieties (which the caterpillars can only use) he looks at you like you're crazy.  I must have been feeling crazy because I walked into his booth anyway.  But I'm glad I did because he had a Sassafras tree for sale!  This is a host plant for the Spicebush Swallowtail.  Dad taught me what they look like while we were up in WV and I scoured the trees looking for Spicebush caterpillars.  Found a few, too!  This area in Florida is the far southern edge of their range so I never see sassafras in the wild.  But it should grow here with no problems - as long as I keep it watered in its infancy.  When I bought it the guy teased me about not making too much tea out of it but I told him I was buying it for Spicebush caterpillars instead.  He said, "Not too many people know about that."  But Melanie knows her host plants and she wants her Spicebush caterpillars back (they're super cute).  Here's a leaf of the sassafras tree; they're very distinctive and easy to identify.

Finally, I like to go visit the butterfly garden and see who's flying around.  Today, I saw a Red Admiral, Zebra Longwing, Cassius Blue, Clouded Sulphur, Monarch, Long-Tailed Skipper and a Spicebush Swallowtail.  Not a bad mix!  I also "adopted" a couple of Polydamas Swallowtail caterpillars that I found.  Shh...don't tell anyone!







Monarch Madness!

They're may have been some sort of basketball tournament going on, but in the Long household it's been Monarch Madness for the last month.  Dozens of caterpillars showed up on all of our milkweed plants.  Even the ones I hide behind other plants! 

Oddly enough, I found two Queen caterpillars, which also use milkweed, but have never been seen before in my yard.  You can tell the difference in the picture below.  Queen cats have a slightly different pattern and have three sets of tubercles rather than two.

In the wild, only about 1-2% of butterflies make it all the way to adulthood.  Predation and parasatization along with plain old bad luck combine to kill off most of the herd.  This changes when caterpillars receive a protector (me).  Unfortunately, with this batch I had about 25% parasitization - a risk you run when you collect the bigger caterpillars.  The bigger they are, the longer they have had to become infested with parasites. 

What kind of parasites?  Well, there's a specific wasp that lays its eggs in the caterpillar.  Sometimes, the caterpillar will die and these tendril-like things will trail from its body - this is where the larva of the wasp have escaped.  Other times, the caterpillar will make its chrysalis, but instead of a butterfly emerging, you get a nasty wasp.  I've never had too much of a problem with them until this recent run of Monarchs.  I was out in the yard the other day and saw a few of the wasps, I managed to squash one and it felt good.

Happily, Mom and I managed to find enough milkweed to feed the piggies (what I call Monarch caterpillars because they really are pigs).  We had to make runs to several garden places but we both managed to score some.  Thanks to my fave nursery, Hollie's Farm and Garden for letting us know when the milkweed came in.  Right now, we're hiding some milkweed on the back patio where the Monarchs can't lay eggs on it.  They eat so much we have to keep a reserve.  But all of it's worth it when you see the final result.  Today, that was ten butterflies emerging!  It got a little crowded, but Mom kept up and released them out into the world.  Here's a couple just hanging out and drying their wings.

Great Purple Hairstreak

All amateur lepidopterists have a list of butterflies and/or moths they want to see in their life.  Right now, I'm just working on seeing all the Florida butterflies I can, with a few surprises when I visit Grandma in West Virginia.  It's been quite a while since I've seen a new butterfly, though.

Happily, this all changed on a trip to a local nursery this weekend.  I was buying a Sweetbay Magnolia (Magnolia virginiana) when I noticed something dark and fast flying around.  At first I thought it was a skipper, but then it landed on the top of a Southern Magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora).  I got a good look at it and sure enough, it was my first sighting of a Great Purple Hairstreak.

I see the other Hairstreaks from time to time.  The Gray, White M, or Red Banded Hairstreak show up sooner or later in my yard.  However, the Great Purple Hairstreak had always been an elusive visitor.  This has a lot to do with its host plant, mistletoe.  Mistletoe grows high up in the trees - mostly oaks in this area - so I'm unlikely to spot them on their host plant.  Males perch at the tops of trees looking for females, so it's unlikely I'd see them.  They will come down to nectar, but since I don't have mistletoe growing in my oaks, I don't have Great Purple Hairstreaks visiting my nectar plants.  The nursery was in front of a forested area so perhaps it was flying in from there to check out the flowers.

I couldn't get the best picture due to lighting circumstances, but here is what I shot.

Sure, lay eggs on the pricey plants

Today I got my first good look at the garden since coming back from vacation.  I found two Giant Swallowtail eggs on the rue which makes sense seeing as how one flew by me yesterday.  I was feeling pretty good today so I did a little yardwork before it got too hot outside.  I planted three wafer ashes (host plant for the Giant Swallowtail), a Spicebush (host for the Spicebush Swallowtail) and a Sweetbay Magnolia (host for the Tiger Swallowtail).  I also pulled some weeds in the immediate area.  Oh, and I did the dance known as the Lubber Grasshopper Stomp.

I saw a Monarch on one of the milkweeds which was no surprise because Mom told me how the Monarchs kept egging my plants while I was gone.  I also saw a Gulf Fritillary caterpillar on one of my passion vines.  In fact, I saw a Gulf Fritillary butterfly laying eggs on the very same passion vine (see picture).  The thing is, I have three passion vines:  blue passion vine (p. caerulea), the yellow (p. lutea), and a cultivar called "Lavender Lady".  Cultivars cost a little more since they are bred to have certain qualities - in this case, pretty purple flowers.  Naturally, the Gulf Frits prefer to eat my expensive, pretty-purple-flowered passion vine.  None of the cheap, native stuff for them.  It's like they know the difference and the "Lavender Lady" is their equivalent of gourmet.  Sometimes, I pick them off and move them over to the blue one since that one is a lot bigger.  Today I just left the little guy alone.  Let him enjoy his gourmet passiflora.  I mean, I'd be pretty mad if someone took my Ben and Jerry's and left with me store-brand vanilla.

Zebra Swallowtail Cats - Does Color Matter

So I'm raising the Zebra ST cats I plundered in West Virginia and two of them have molted for the first time.  What's strange is that in Florida, the caterpillars usually stay black for at least the first three instars (meaning the first three times they molt).  Then, they can range from black to green, and some even take on a light reddish color.  All colors come out to be the same butterfly and science isn't really sure why the caterpillars vary in color. 

The chrysalis can also be brown or green, but science has a better explanation for that.  If a caterpillar makes it on a rough part of the plant, it assumes it's an older part of the plant and turns brown to better blend in.  If the surface is smooth, it thinks it's a newer part of the plant and turns green to look like a younger leaf.  This isn't set in stone as I've had caterpillars turn into chrysalises that were brown, green, and shades in between despite where I kept them in the critter keeper.

The caterpillars I'm raising right now have already changed from black to a pale, fleshy color.  I can even see the stripes on their bodies which usually aren't apparent until they get a little bigger.  I wonder if there is some advantage to them becoming a lighter color sooner?  Is there an advantage to staying black in Florida?  With our white sand, the plant's white flowers and pale green leaves, I would imagine the advantage would be to turn pale as soon as possible.  Yet, it's the West Virginia caterpillars changing color so early in their caterpillar life.  Maybe it's not the color and the stripes that help break up their body line and avoid detection by the many birds I saw.  Either way, it's just one more mystery science hasn't found an explanation for.

Tiger Swallowtail Beginnings

Well, I'm totally excited to be raising Tiger Swallowtails.  I've had three caterpillars before, but it didn't end well.  Two were totally my fault; I think the third was sick.  Anyway, it's a chance to make a fresh start and raise the six eggs I found yesterday. 

Tiger Swallowtails tend to lay their eggs on the top of leaves.  This is a little unusual, although Giant STs do the same.  Still, most swallowtails curve their body while laying eggs and place them on the underside of the leaf.  This makes it easier for short humans looking upward, but I can find eggs no matter where they put them!

Most swallowtail eggs start out green, like the one pictured.  Then, they'll turn slightly pearlescent and some take on a reddish or brownish tone.  After that, they will often turn gray - the color of the caterpillar- shortly before the caterpillar emerges.  This can take 3-7 days, but in my experience it's usually near the shorter end of that range.

Now, let me not forget my other friends.  The Zebra Swallowtails are happily munching their pawpaw like good little caterpillars (see picture below of hole munched in the leaf).  One of the original three seems to have disappeared, but I had another one hatch so the count remains at three.  Two more eggs have yet to hatch, but they have changed color so I expect them soon.