We came from here:
The thread "January 2014 Butterflies, Moths & Larva" in
Gardening for Butterflies, Birds and Bees forum
Wow! Already time for a new thread for February. And that infernal groundhog says we're getting six more weeks of winter. Luckily, it's warmed up here in Florida.
Since this question comes up a lot, I thought I'd share a recent experience with my Monarch butterflies. We had three come out on a cold and rainy day this week so Mom put them on some milkweed that's growing close to the house, and bent the stem a bit so it was actually underneath our entryway. That way the butterflies wouldn't get rained on. Well, it kept raining and they stayed on that stem for two whole days and nights. They were gone on the third day when it warmed up. So to those who wonder how long a butterfly can go without eating or in cold, wet conditions, I'm saying at least two days for Monarchs. Just try to keep them out of the rain so their wings don't get wet.
Now, I promised you some pictures but I got sick last week and didn't go to the museum. I went today but had to cut it short because I almost passed out. I think it was a combination of low blood sugar and this weird chemical smell in the classroom. I gotta start carrying snacks with me. (My doctor already makes me carry water everywhere because of my fainting episodes.)
So here's some butterflies! We have lots of Monarchs right now. I released six and collected about eight caterpillars from inside the flight cage.
And we still have lots of Zebra Longwings which is good because I worry about them in the wild. They're very sensitive to cold and while we haven't had any "official" freezes or even frost in Tampa, I haven't seen one outside in a couple of months. Not unheard of, so let's just hope they return in the spring.
The Buckeyes were not cooperating but I managed to get two okay pictures. The first one was chilling up above one of the hanging baskets and the other one is a side view.
And here's a Great Southern White that's a little worse for the wear, but still hanging in there!
Now, I can't begin to tell you how many visitors come into the flight cage and stand there with their arms out waiting to a butterfly to land on them. I explain how unlikely this is (and roll my eyes when they're not looking) but people never listen. However, it does happen sometimes, and today it happened to me. When I was releasing the Monarchs, I had a Zebra Longwing suddenly land on my shoulder. I shooed him away and just about that time I felt something on the nape of my neck. So I brush my hand back there and a Great Southern White was on me! I must have been giving off some serious butterfly vibes, I guess?!
