Two Queens Emerge!

Well, we have some exciting news today.  First off, our first Queen butterfly emerged from its chrysalis which was hanging in our Mud Room.  Being a female, it's truly a queen.  Additionally, our last of two Monarch chrysalises emerged today- also a female.  So, we'll have the possibility of getting some more eggs soon if all goes well.

(Queen chrysalis - it greatly resembles a Monarch's, but is smaller)

(Our new female Queen butterfly)

We have had so few females this season.  My wife Janae wonders if temperature has anything to do with the male/female ratio?  That's good question.  I'll have to do some research and see what I find.  Irregardless, female Monarchs have been few and far between.  I'm very excited to have one at the moment.

Our Corpus Christi area was put under a hurricane watch today.  I've just got my pavillion set up the way I want it, but I may have to dismantle everything in a few days.  We'll keep you updated.  We may have to evacuate some butterflies with us.  That may be a first eh?

Happy Monarching!


Caleb & Janae Warren
savethemonarch1@gmail.com

Two More Female Butterflies Emerge Today

Well, yesterday, we decided to release the one female butterfly that had emerged.  Well, this morning we awoke to find two more females have emerged.  You might remember that our first batch of butterflies was mostly male.  So far, this batch is exactly the opposite--all girls so far. 

There is only one caterpillar left to pupate, so this batch is all but done.  My son Joshua found three other chrysalises that are starting so change color.  So, we'll have several butterflies within the next 24 hours if all goes well.,

If you are a teacher or educator in the Corpus Christi Texas area, and are interested in raising Monarchs with your class, feel free to contact me for further information and support.  I'm hoping many will help raise some for release this October for the fall migration.

Happy Monarching!


Caleb, Janae & Joshua Warren

savethemonarch1@gmail.com

(So far, this batch is all females...3 and counting.)

(Two new female Monarchs emerged today.)

Congratulations Mr. & Mrs. Warren! It's a Girl!

Finally, we have our first emerged butterfly from the second batch, and it's a female Monarch!  So, right off the bat, we've equaled the number of females from the first batch.  Our current number of caterpillars/chrysalises left is 19.  Of those, 1 has emerged, 15 are in chrysalises, 2 are in J Shape, and 1 is still a caterpillar.  We are pleased with the success of this second batch.  However, we started this batch with 50+ caterpillars.  So to lose over half is disheartening.  Still, our average is way over the wild's.  It makes me wonder, with so many predators and dangers out there, how does the wild population produces 100 million butterflies that make it to Mexico each year?  With an average of less than 1 out of every 10 making it to adulthood, the wild must produce literally billions of Monarchs each year to have a successful migration.

(Our first female Monarch from our second batch.)

While inspecting our plants recently, we found three Queen butterflies.  They are from the same family as the Monarchs, and they even feed on Milkweed.  They are slightly smaller than Monarchs, and they don't migrate.  All three are now in J Shapes.  Even though we were running low on Milkweed, we decided to keep them.  We look forward to seeing them emerge.  You can see one of the Queen caterpillars hanging in the J Shape in the picture below.

(Queen caterpillar hanging in the J Shape. Note the extra set of antenae on its back.)

Our mote around the outside pavillion seems to be working well, although we see a fire ant or two every time we inspect it.  Hopefully, it will keep them away until our butterflies can emerge.  We plan to put a capful of bleach in each table leg bowl to further discourage the fire ants and to prevent misquitos from breeding in the water.

Oh, one last note, though it doesn't exactly relate to Monarching.  Yesterday, while at the health food store, I saw some Purple Ribbon Spanish Lavender plants for sale.  Well, I'm a huge fan of lavender, so I couldn't resist, even though Lavender doesn't tend to grow well here in South Texas.  However, I'll give it a try.  I'm not sure if the Monarchs will like the lavender blooms or not.  We will see.  Either way, I'll have a beautiful plant that smells good too for a while.

(My new Purple Ribbon Spanish Lavender Plant. Isn't it beautiful?

Happy Monarching!

Caleb & Janae Warren

savethemonarch1@gmail.com

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.

One Monarch Emerges and One Escapes

Well, today is not yet even half over, and it has already been an eventful one.  Monarch #6 emerged this morning, and yes, it was another male.  My son and I decided to put them all in a big pavillion that we have.  Well, in the process, our one and only female ecaped.  Boy was I disappointed.  However, since we have other caterpillars up and coming, it's not a total loss.  I went ahead and released all the other males except one.  I'm saving him for two reasons.  First, he was the only butterfly that was getting nectar from the plants in the pavillion.  All the others were only trying to figure out how to escape.  Second, I'm waiting until my 2 year old daughter gets home, and then we'll release him together.

There is only one chrysalis remaining.  It should emerge in a couple of days.

Well, that's all from here.  Have a great day!


Caleb

P.S.  Oh, one last note.  We recently got a new dog.  She is an Austrailian Shepherd, and she is about 7 months old.  She's a good dog, and faster than you think.  While releasing our Monarchs, one flew in her vacinity, and in a flash, she had clamped down on it.  I could barely see the tips of the wings in her mouth.  I was mortified.  I verbally chastized her, and she finally dropped the butterfly out of her mouth and slinked away.  To my great relief, the butterfly immediately took off and seemed unharmed.  They are pretty tough creatures.  Hopefully, our dog's butterfly hunting days are over.  *smile*