No butterflies today as it was cool and overcast, and I was out there kind of late in the day. But I did have some caterpillar experiences to share.
We finally got cold enough that some of my passion vines are losing their leaves. And the pipevine is finally going dormant. I found this little Gulf Fritillary cat on my P. lutea and I moved him over to P. 'Lavender Lady'. You can see the plant he was on was not going to support him to butterfly-hood.
Whereas, 'Lavender Lady' is actually blooming. It's also starting to creep toward the garage so I'm going to have to move it. But at least my caterpillar has plenty to eat now.
Some of my Corkystem Passion vines (P. suberosa) are doing well, depending on where they are in the yard. This one got egg-bombed. The yellow color and the fact that they're clumped together make me think Zebra Longwing, although I haven't seen one in the yard in a while. Generally, this time of year would only be Gulf Frits. I might have to bring those inside and see what they hatch into. I can always take them to MOSI - we're a little light on caterpillars right now.
I was checking my Senna ligustrina for caterpillars and general health. One of them has gotten a little misshapen. I think I might dig it up and let one of the seedlings that have popped up take its place. Anyway, don't ask how I saw this, but there was a little orange thing dangling from silk off a leaf. This Sulphur caterpillar is probably only a day or two old. If you're having trouble spotting it, look at the dark spot on my finger. I think it's dirt. Then, go southwest. See the orange thing? Baby Sulphur caterpillar. I put him on a leaf where he could munch happily.
Speaking of munching happily, something bigger had been eating my Senna. So it's another episode of caterpillar hunting with Melanie! Now, I first saw these chewed leaves and you can tell it's very fresh. Look at the droplets of water where the leaf was eaten.
Nearby were more chewed leaves, but that looked like older damage.
I kept looking, afraid a bird might have gotten my prey instead, but then I found him! An Orange-Barred Sulphur. I was looking for Cloudless Sulphurs since they're more common this time of year, but you know what I'm going to say - "El Nino!" If we do have warmer years, the Orange-Barreds will stick around longer, but this was still a bit of a surprise. I did bring this guy in and put him in a container. Sulphurs have to get so big before I bring them in because: they have a horrible death rate, and it's super hard to find those little guys even in a tank.
In spring preparation news, host plants are coming back for the spring butterflies! I was in the ditch in front of my neighbor's yard, checking out the situation. This is the one that my neighbor agreed not to mow and then three days later the county came and did it. I may have to throw myself in front of a mower this year, folks. I count on you guys to raise my bail money.
The first host plant is Pellitory which is used by Red Admirals. Red Admirals also use False Nettles and Stinging Nettles, and this is in the same family, but is much nicer since it doesn't sting you. It grows in sun or shade but seems to like places that stay a little on the wet side. It dries right up as soon as it gets hot so it's one of those weeds I wouldn't bother to pull even if it wasn't a host plant. It got hot so early last year that I didn't get to raise any Red Admirals.
They build nests in the Pellitory and hopefully I'll be able to show you that in a month or two!
Also making a comeback is Virginia Pepper Grass. This is used by the Checkered White, primarily. We feed it to the Great Southern Whites at MOSI, but I've never seen them lay on it in the wild. I've only ever seen one Cabbage White in Florida, so I don't know what they're doing. Harassing farmers? Checkered Whites lay the eggs right under the flowers so that's where you have to look. They only lay a couple at a time, though. Great Southern Whites are nicer because they tend to lay their eggs in clusters which makes them easier to collect at the museum. Pepper Grass grows along the sides of the road and in disturbed sites. It grows all over the medians of the interstates. I used to get stuck in rush hour traffic and just sit and watch the Whites fly around. But this is another plant that dries up as soon as it gets hot, so not worth pulling, but you also don't see the Whites later in the year because of that. FYI, if you're looking for something else to feed White butterflies that isn't a weed, they will use Cleome (aka Spider Flower). Just make sure you have plenty of it! Here's Pepper Grass pictures (and yes, the seedpods have a peppery taste, though I've personally never tried it).
FYI, the white flower in there is Spanish Needles. They also grow in the same kind of areas. When I sit in traffic, I often see the Dainty Sulphurs that use it as a host right alongside the Whites. I used to drive down the interstate and just see tons of each species every spring. And don't worry folks, I promise spring is right around the corner!
