2011 Monarch Butterfly Season Coming Up Soon

Hello Everyone!

What an exciting year 2010 was.  Personally I raised over 60 Monarchs bringing my lifetime total to 2060.  At first, I was disappointed that I didn't raise more.  I'm typically used to rearing hundreds a season.  However, there were several factors that contributed to my low numbers.

1.  Environment.  The environment here in south Texas is a bit different than what I am used to in Georgia.  It's hotter, more humid, and more arid at the same time.  It's an unusual experience living here on the coast.

2.  Predators.  There are predators here that I didn't experience in Georgia.  The Tacinid flies are particularly rough here.  Fire ants too decimated close to one hundred of my caterpillars.

What I will Do Different This Year:

1.  Start Early.  I plan to start earlier this year than last.  Hopefully we can get an early jump on the predators and raise a batch or two before the flies and ants get too bad.

2.  Keep The Caterpillars Cool.  I think some of my caterpillars and butterflies overheated last summer.  Again, it's way hotter down here than what I am used to.  So, I plan to relocate my butterfly pavilion to a spot that will get more shade and less full sun.  We'll see how it goes.

3.  Keep It Simple.  I like to go all out on projects that I work on.  However, a lot can be accomplished with a minimal investment.  So, my goal is to raise as many butterflies as possible on a small budget.

So, I'm setting a small goal for myself of raising 70+ Monarchs this year.  Will I make it?  I'll keep you posted.

Happy Monarching!


Caleb Warren
http://helpsavethemonarch.calebwarren.com/
http://shop.calebwarren.com/

New Monarch Butterfly Has Difficulty Flying

This morning the last two remaining Monarch butterflies in our outdoor pavillion emerged.  They were both males.  We certaining have had plenty of males this season.  I decided to release them both.  One was obviously healthy and strong and took to the skies immediately.  However, the other one appeared weak, and his wings didn't look fully inflated.  They had a slight wavy look to them  I have seen this before.  No doubt what happened was that shortly after he emerged from his chrysalis, he must have fell from his perch.  If you remember, we have had two other Monarchs that fell in this manner, and their wings were so deformed that they couldn't fly.  Fortunately, this butterfly was able to crawl back up to a perched position to finish filling out his wings.  However, the time it took him to do so did affect his wings, so they did not fully inflate and have this slight wavy look to them.  He also appeared weak, so I brought him inside and placed him in my smaller indoor pavillion.  I checked his wings, and they are not stuck together.  Sometimes, that can happen, preventing them from flying.  Tomorrow morning, I will give him some sugar water to strengthen him.  Hopefully, I can release him tomorrow.

(Monarch butterfly with slightly wavy wings, though you can't see it in this picture's angle.  He's having difficulty flying. No doubt his wings were slightly deformed due to an interruption during the drying process.)

We have three Monarchs left to emerge from this second batch.  One of them is hanging from a nail in our Mud Room.  (see photo below.)  Additionally, we have three Queen butterflies that we are looking forward to seeing emerge from their chrysalises.  This will be a first for all of us.

(Monarch chrysalis in our Mud Room. Note the wings are showing through now. It will emerge tomorrow morning.)

There are several eggs on our Milkweed plants that one of our females laid.  So, batch three will be up and running in a few days.  My current operation is much smaller that what I used to do in Georgia, but we are having fun with it.

I first began raising Monarchs in spring 2005.  In a span of three years, I raised 2000 Monarch butterflies.  Then, due to health problems, I was unable to raise any for the next two years.  Man did I miss it.  This Spring, I started again, and as of today, we have successfully raised 17 butterflies so far this year.  Thus, my grand total is currently 2017 Monarch butterflies and counting.  Please feel free to write my with your success stories in raising Monarchs.  I'd love to hear from you.

Happy Monarching!


Caleb & Janae Warren
savethemonarch1@gmail.com

New Butterflies Emerged Today!

06/10/09

Well, yesterday, five Monarch butterflies emerged from their chrysalises here in our home! We are so excited. We have 4 males and 1 female. But this experience is not our first in rearing Monarchs, so let me back up a moment and give you a little background.

My family and I moved here to South Texas in 2008. Prior to that, we had lived in South Georgia. There, I raised over 2,000 Monarchs in less than 2 years. I was a high school teacher back then, and we had a nice program going at the school that I taught at. However, due to a lifelong debilitating bout with crippling arthritis, I had to quit my job. Additionally, my wife and I had a new baby girl in the family. So, my wife felt it best to relocate to be closer to family for help and support, so off to Corpus Christi Texas we moved, where my wife was born and raised.

Both my wife and I were saddened by the fact that we had to suspend our butterfly rearing project. It brought such great joy to all who were involved with it, both children and adults.

Well, last fall, I had artificial hip revision surgery, and I am currently recooperating from that. The arthritis is in all parts of my body now, and it greatly limits what I can do. However, my wife and I decided to try and rear a few Monarch Butterflies here and there, and yesterday morning, our first 5 emerged! What joy!

We purchased some Milkweed plants from a local nursery, and to our delight, there were caterpillars and eggs already on the plants. Our joy soon turned to sadness and our first 5 caterpillars mysteriously died when they tried to pupate. They all died at the exact same time in their final stage of pupation. This prompted me to do some research on the internet, and I found out that there is a certain predatory fly called the Tachinid fly that lays it's eggs on caterpillars. They feed on the insides of the caterpillar but do not kill it until around the time it pupates.

So, the first 5 were a loss. We were off to a bad start. However, a couple of days later, we notice more caterpillars on the plants. They must have been eggs when we bought the Milkweed. We immediately took the plants inside and placed them in a protective pavillion. There were 8 in number, and 5 emerged yesterday. One fell as it was pupating and died. It looks like the remaining 2 will emerge in the next day or two. We are thrilled!

Lastly, we got a few more Milkweed plants. Again, they have caterpillars on them, so here we go again. Sometimes, it seems the hardest part in rearing Monarchs is keeping sufficient Milkweed for the caterpillars to eat. They have such big appetites.

So, our Texas count for rearing Monarchs in 2010 is 5 and counting. We'll keep you posted.

Warm Regards,

Caleb Warren

SaveTheMonarch1@gmail.com

Help Save Monarch Butterflies

Dear Reader,

Thank you for visiting my "Help Save Monarch Butterflies" Blog. In it you will find useful information about Monarch Butterflies such as their life cycle, why they are threatened, how to raise them, and how to help them make a comeback in the environment. As you will learn, planting Milkweed is a crucial part. To date, I have sucessfully reared over 2,000 Monarchs, and I look forward to sharing what I have learned with you.

If you are interested in rearing Monarchs yourself, there are a number of websites in which you can find rearing aids and information. These include, but are not limited to: http://www.monarchwatch.org/, http://www.insectlore.com/, http://www.educationalscience.com/, http://www.livemonarch.com/, & my own websites located at http://savethemonarch.calebwarren.com/, and http://shop.calebwarren.com/. Also, if you happen to live in the Corpus Christi Texas area, you can get rearing supplies from me locally.

I always welcome feedback. Please let me know what additional features on my websites and Blog would be helpful to you.

All of my work is strictly volunteer and of a non-profit nature. My efforts are solely dedicated to helping the Monarch make a comeback. All monies go right back into the project. Hopefully, you will come to love this creature as much as I do and want to help.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at: savethemonarch1@gmail.com

Warm Regards,


Caleb Warren