Updates
Today it was definitely time to go out and get new milkweed plants for my seven hungry little caterpillars. The temperatures and humidity are soaring here in Minnesota and even my fresh cuts wilted when I brought them in. As long as the leaves aren't crispy I'm never too worried. I took some photos of my caterpillars, but not all of them turned out, so even though I promised you'd see all seven it didn't quite work out. Nonetheless, here they are!
As you can see, the leaves are extremely wilted and dying. Darn heat wave!
This plant fared better than the others.
Of course as you can see it was definitely time for food! And I couldn't help myself. I added four new residents on purpose.
This little guy/gal is really tiny!
These two are like twins, they even reside at the top of the same plant.
I was even lucky enough to find an egg today!
I don't bring in many eggs, because it's so easy to get your hopes up. But the reality is any kind of trauma can kill the egg. Other caterpillars hitting it or walking over it, hitting the stem or other leaves too hard, and even other bugs interfering can cause them to die. The best and as far as I know only way to know for sure if an egg is dead is if the entire thing turns dark blackish-purple. Not to be confused with what it looks like just hours before it hatches however. Just before the tiny caterpillar breaks free, the very top of the egg will turn black. That is of course the caterpillar's face.
Eggs are difficult to find because there is only one on each leaf and they are generally on the underside of the leaf. Not to mention they are tiny and easy to miss! From what I have observed, eggs hatch within five days. Then the little gray caterpillars earn their bright stripes within a day or two. They remain little eating machines for two weeks (fourteen days) before finding a suitable place to make a chrysalis. Before they shed their skins to reveal the beautiful pupa underneath, they prepare for nearly forty eight hours. First they make a little silk button from silk threads produced from their mouth. Then they hang upside down in a "hanging J" getting ready to change. When the time comes, their skin splits revealing green underneath. Then they are in the pupa phase for ten two twelve days. The chrysalis then darkens with the patterns of the butterfly just two days before the butterfly flies away. It's truly amazing to watch.
I have been asked by many people if I want to make this a career someday, and I honestly don't know. Entomology would be an amazing career to pursue, in fact anything in the biology field would be. Knowing that this is my passion you'd think it would be an easy decision to say "Yes! That is what I want to do in life!" But in fact like every other teen I am still figuring out what I want to go for. Teaching would be a rewarding career as well. I could use my butterflies as a learning tool in the spring and teach my students about milkweed and how to coexist with nature. And I love other kinds of biology as well! No matter what I choose to do I am hoping to have an adequate supply of milkweed at my home. I could never give it up.
There isn't much else to say today. I will continue to post updates about, as a friend so eloquently put it, my flying beauties. Write to you soon :)
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