DavidLMO said:WooHoo

Oh and two firsts for me. Of those on the Swan plant, one had just shed and I watched one of the big guys poop. hehe

Yippee..

Congratulations David!!!
Could you do me a favor and post a picture of your Honey vine in bloom here on the thread? I have sone questions on mine and i wanted to clear it up. Thank you.

I think someone is trying to test me I have been stung 6 times in the last 3 days { 4 wasp and 2 ground nesting bees } checking my milkweed plants for eggs and larvae . I figured ... {go figure} ... that monarchs would want to nectar up after laying eggs , or { silly me } find my milkweed WHILE nectaring up ... so I planted butterfly bush , bee balm and Purple Loosestrife all around each milkweed variety ... all monarchs visiting me have been females and they laid eggs then skedaddled ... isn't that a guy thing ? next year we practice SEGREGATION and group planting ... so much for anthromorphism and monarch females ... GO FIGURE

frostweed said:Congratulations David!!!
Could you do me a favor and post a picture of your Honey vine in bloom here on the thread? I have sone questions on mine and i wanted to clear it up. Thank you.

No. I don't have a big one I planted 2 seedlings together but they are only ~ 15 inches tall and will not likely bloom til next year.

Moreover - I have 2 cameras and both are all borken. And the camera on my phone sucks and besides - I cannot get pics off anyway as the only way to do so is via Bluetooth connection. Sucky I know. No way of using a cable. Anyway, I cannot get the Bluetooth connection to work. BIG

Sorry.

Update with today's numbers of cats found :

Swan 7
Tropical 2
Common 1
Swamp 1
Butterfly weed 2

Swallowtail cat on fennel 1

David that is great about the cats!!!
It is o.k. if you don't have pictures of the Honeyvine, I found some pictures on the database and that told me what I needed to know.
But thank you for trying.

Monarch #WGG757 released today . 3 ladies and a male . This makes #757 my 70th release of the year and the 32nd tagged release . If any monarchs dead or alive , with these wing tags are found contact monarchwatch.org at 1.888.TAGGING or [email protected]. It will help the overall citizen scientific community AND will tell me if any of mine made the migration , maybe all the way to the highlands of Central Mexico or went SPLAT on your windshield as you drive to work .


no monarch suffered vertigo in the taking of this pic ... the tag went on upside down

nice, Pegasys! I just got my kit and played with the datasheet online, learning to autofill. I'll be sharing with at least one other who rears them.

sallyg said:nice, Pegasys! I just got my kit and played with the datasheet online, learning to autofill. I'll be sharing with at least one other who rears them.

awesome

Update with today's numbers of cats found on Swan MW

went from 4 - 5 - 7 - 9. After terrbible rain storm Friday evening, went to 4 on Sat Morning. As of this norning that is down to 1. None were 5 th Instars. BIG

David, that's sad news. Condolences.

i turned over my last 24 larvae and 4 chrysalides to a new highly experienced rearer I got put in touch with by our local Conservatory ... NOT the one I gave been training for the last 8 weeks who bailed on me and was getting ready to pack my bags for my trip tomorrow . I released my last eclosed tagged adult today also and planned on relaxing for the next 5 days worry free . BUT ... as I was watching the male fly up to a nearby tree I saw something on a nearby syriaca ...


I just HAD to investigate didn't I ... there are 34 total in 2 containers ... I guess I have more work to do when I get home ... LOL

How long do they stay in the 'egg' stage?

3 to 4 days ... I have a usb microscope so I have watched them as they turned 'blackhead' and then chewed their way out ... rest and turn around and eat the egg casing ...

RobinSeeds said:How long do they stay in the 'egg' stage?

3 - 8 days according to Monarch Watch...The number of days are a function of many environmental and geographical variables. One of the key variables for egg duration and the duration of each Instar stage is temperature.

That's pretty interesting Pegasys, thanks for the info!

They hatch much faster in the summer than in winter; it is true. Probably don't want to become hard-boiled Monarchs!

As of today, I found 4 Monarch cats.

More sadness on the Monarch front. Sigh.

I found my first Monarch cat attempting to do a J. It had hooked up its silk on the underside of all things an Elephant Ear leaf. Unfortunately it looks like it succumbed to one of the Black deaths - most likely bacterial as a result of all the rain we have had - > 9 inches in the past week.

Of course when I first saw it at a distance, I was so excited as I have never seen a J nor chrysalis. Upon closer inspection I could see it was just hanging there lifeless and was a charcoal black color.

Rain droplets are a big spreader of the OE spore. One reason it's important to control moisture when raising them inside. Well, one of many reasons. Try not to take it too hard, David. Late summer is a bad time for OE infection.

Thanks Melanie - I know and appreciate your thoughts. It just ticks me off.
One thing I am convinced of - next year I WILL be rearing Monarchs. Not sure I want to try this season, but the cats I could secure would be done in time for the trip South.

I was reading up on the bacterial diseases and water is a main culprit. We are as of today over 9 inches in a freaking week.

No camera or I would take a pic of the cat I found today.