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

More baby Monarchs Soon To Come...Maybe.

Today has been once again an interesting day.  First, two new males emerged from their chrysalises this morning.  I went ahead and placed them in with the others, so there are now 5 Monarchs in the outdoor pavillion.  There are three males and two females.

After taking care of some morning errands, I came home to find that there had been an afternoon shower here.  What a welcomed relief.  We need the rain here so badly.  As I was looking in my outdoor pavillion, I noticed that I only saw three butterflies.  I knew that I had a total of five in there as of this morning, so my mind started to race, and I began to fear the worst.  However, to my great relief, I found the other two together on a Milkweed plant.  Yes, you guessed it, they were mating, or at least attempting to.

(Two Monarchs mating in my outdoor pavillion.)

I'm not entirely sure if the mating attempt was successful or not.  When I found them, I immediately ran and got my camera.  But by the time I returned, they had already separated.  This is unusual.  In my experience, mating pairs stay connected for 12-24 hours.  So, perhaps they got interrupted for one reason or another.  However, it certainly is a promising sign.  If they do successfully mate, then we should have a new batch of babies in about a week or so.

Happy Monarching!

Caleb & Janae Warren

 

Looking For Milkweed? Don't Forget To Look In Your Own Yard

Late in the afternoon, I checked my outdoor pavillion one last time.  I noticed that one of the caterpillars was dead on the dirt in the pot of its host plant.  As I picked it up and examined it, I noticed evidence that yes, once again, the Tachinid fly larvae had struck again.  I was feeling a bit blue, because a good number of my caterpillars were not making it to adulthood, yet a lot of my Milkweed was being consumed.

Before I continue with my story, let me give you a little background information.  My family and I just purchased a house this year.  It was built in 1955, and we did a little remodeling before we moved in.  The lady that previously owned it lived in it from the day it was built until the day she died.  The house and yard had been unkept for 1-2 years by the time we purchased it.  I'm still trying to get the grounds under control, and we're getting close.  I'm watching very close to see what plants come up this year.  That will give me some kind of idea as to what the previous owner did to beautify the yard, and I'll start to make some choices from there.  I'm sure our new dog will no doubt influence my decisions too.  In fact, she already has.  *smile*

Anyway, as I was walking through my yard, thinking about my normal shortage of Milkweed, I noticed a plant next to my garden hose.  I would have passed it by, but I noticed two Milkweed bugs on it.  Milkweed bugs are orange and black insects that feed exclusively on Milkweed plants.  (See photo below).  If you see them on a plant, you've no doubt just found a Milkweed plant.  Although they won't hurt your Monarch caterpillars, they do consume their host plant, and for that reason, they are in competition with the Monarchs.  For that reason, I did a double take.  All of a sudden, something popped into my brain.  If those are Milkweed bugs, they would only be on Milkweed plants.  Could it be that I have wild Milkweed plants growing on my recently purchased property?  Well, I told my wife there is one easy way to find out.  I pinched off one of the leaves of the mystery plant, and you guessed it, a white milky fluid leaked out!  It indeed appears to be Milkweed.  However, it is definitely not Tropical Milkweed, one of the most commonly known Milkweed species.  By its appearance, if I had to take a guess, I'd say it looks like Sand Milkweed.  It does have flower buds under its leaves, so hopefully it will be blooming soon.  At that point, I should know exactly which species of Milkweed it is. 

One thing is for sure, if you're running low on Milkweed, it never hurts to look around your local area, including your own back yard.  You might be surprised what you will find there.

(Unknown species of Milkweed growing wild in my back yard!)

(Leaf of the wild Milkweed plant growing in my back yard.)

(Wild Milkweed plant growing in my back yard with Milkweed bug on it.)

(Milkweed Bug)

A few more caterpillars are getting ready to pupate.  I'll see what we got in the morning and let you know.

Happy Monarching!

Caleb & Janae Warren

The Runt of the Litter Emerges

This morning, I awoke to a wonderful suprise.  The last of our 7 chrysalises emerged as a small but beautiful male Monarch.  Since he was the last one, and we had already released the other six, he got our full attention.  We saw him emerge from the chrysalis, which is always a wonderful treat.  I've enclosed some pictures and video clips of him emerging, but here is a brief synapsis of what occurs.

When the butterfly first emerges, his wings are all moise and crumpled, and his abdomen appears bloated.  It is filled with a special fluid which must be immediately pumped into his wings in the first 10-15 minutes after emerging.  If not, he/she will never fly.  It is amazing to watch the wings slowly fill up to their full state.  Thereafter, the butterfly will hang upside down for two to four hours allowing the wings to dry.  Then, the butterfly will take off to the skies.

If after emerging from its chrysalis, it falls from it to the ground, it is imperative that the butterfly quickly be placed back up there so it can continue to fill and dry its wings properly.  Most butterflies do not fall in this way, but if you observe this happen, quickly but gently pick it up and help it grasp its chrysalis again.  If for some reason, the chrysalis is not available for the butterfly to cling to, help it to cling to any object that it can hang from in an upside down position.

In the above photos, you can see how engorged the abdomen is when they first emerge.  Then, as they pump that abdominal fluid into their wings over the next 10-15 minutes, they finally take on their full shape.  Thus far, I've raised over 2,000 Monarchs, and I never get tired of seeing them emerge from their chrysalises as new butterflies.  I hope you get to experience this many times over as you raise your own Monarchs.

Monarch Butterfly Emerging (1 of 3)

Monarch Butterfly Emerging (2 of 3)

Monarch Butterfly Emerging (3 of 3)

So, our first batch of Monarchs is finished.  To recap, we had a total of 13 caterpillars.  The first 5 died due to the parasitic worms of a predatory fly.  Fortunately, the remaining caterpillars were still in their eggs when the first 5 were infected.  Thereafter, the remaining 8 hatched out and began their cycle.  We were able to protect them in our covered pavilions.  Of them, 7 made it to butterflies!  Only one died, and that was due to an accident.  When he pupated, his chrysalis fell and burst open.  So, 7 lived and 6 died.  Believe it or not, that's not a bad start for raising Monarchs.  In the wild, on the average, only one would have made it.

Already our next batch of caterpillars are developing and munching away.  Again, we have a variety of ages, varying from eggs to almost ready to pupate.  We'll keep you updated on the progress of the 2nd wave.

Happy Monarching!

Caleb & Janae Warren

Photography and video shots by E. Janae Warren

P.S.  Note to all educators, teachers, students, children, etc: One of the main goals of this site is to provide you with helpful information and support as you endeavor to raise Monarch butterflies and help restore their habitat in your community.  If you do not find an answer to your questions here on my Blog, or at my website: http://www.savethemonarch.calebwarren.com/, feel free to email me and I will do my best to help.