Time for an update, folks! Well, the same day I spotted that Polydamas outside, I had one emerge! It was weird because I was sitting on the couch and I thought I heard something in the critter keeper on the table next to me. But I didn't see anything. Finally, after I kept hearing things, I picked up the critter keeper and there was a Polydamas inside! I let it go fairly late in the afternoon but I still thought it would fly away. I didn't take a picture because I didn't have my camera on me and I figured you guys had already seen a Polydamas that day, anyway. But when I left to go to the movies the next morning (saw "Interstellar" on IMAX; it's pretty good) the butterfly was still sitting on the porterweed where I left it! So I took a picture.
After the movies and lunch at Red Lobster (mmm...shrimp scampi), Mom and I went to one of our local nurseries to buy her some pansies. Mom loves pansies and so I try to make sure she gets them as soon as they come in. They'll last until May or maybe early June at which point the heat kills them. Both of my local nurseries sent emails this week that pansies were in but we went to the one because I hadn't been there in a long time. It happens to be where I bought my Sweetbay Magnolia (host for the Tiger ST). While I was buying that Magnolia, I had my only sighting of a Great Purple Hairstreak. So this place is kind of dear to my heart. I wish they wouldn't sell invasives, but beyond shaming them and buying only the natives (and non-invasive pansies), I can't do a whole lot. Vote with your dollars, folks! Anyway, I told the guy who came up to me that I was a butterfly gardener so don't be surprised if I go around with my camera chasing butterflies. He told me they had a bunch of caterpillars on their pipevine and I asked if he wanted me to take them to MOSI? He said I could have them. I looked, but he only had three Polydamas. He said one of his workers trimmed back the pipevine before telling him or he would have left it alone. He said a few weeks ago the caterpillars had eaten it down to nothing. So here are my triplets.
As I wandered over to the milkweed, I found one fat Monarch and two smaller guys. A lady employee approached me and I told her I was just petting the caterpillars. She told me those would sting me. So you guys know what I did next. I grabbed the big one and put it in my hand and explained that Monarchs cannot sting you, and that no butterfly caterpillars in this area can sting you, it's the moths you have to watch out for. Mom said the look on the employee's face was classic. I know we make fun of big box store employees a lot on this site, but frankly, I'm a little worried about the small businesses, too! Maybe she was new. Anyway, here's the Monarch I molested after I returned him to a nicer part of the milkweed than he was on. Gotta fatten him up some more!
There were a lot of Cassius Blues flying around but the only other butterfly I saw was this Gulf Fritillary enjoying the pentas.
Besides the pansies, I was tempted to buy one Blanket Flower. They're pretty easy to grow from seed, but I wanted this particular one because I felt it had the best color. All the others were either solid yellow or solid red but this one was the perfect mix. Even if it doesn't come true from seed, I figure I'll just have regular-looking Blanket Flowers and that's fine by me.
