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Monarch Butterfly Babies... desperately need help

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Posted by rosalie S.W W A Aust (My Page) on
Sun, Apr 9, 06 at 2:58

Has anyone any suggestions about how I can save my caterpillar babies. Last year, we had a few Monarchs visit our new garden while the buddliea were flowering, and laid some eggs on a carefully nutured milkweed plant. In due course, we eventually had about 8 big fat stripey caterpillars go and pupate. This spring and summer we have been blessed with an abundance of the big butterflies dancing around the flowering buddliea, and we had high hopes for lots of caterpillar babies on the big milkweed. Lots of eggs were laid, the kids and I spent ages out there watching the butterflies going about their business... And the babies have hatched now... And as fast as they are hatching, there is a whole bunch of bugs attacking them, sucking out the vitals and killing them... a very very few little caterpillars have managed to avoid this depredation. The bugs attacking them are a type of brown shield bug, and a skinnier shiny black and bright red orange one; that both just grab the little pillarcats and stab them and suck the sap out...
Is it possible does anyone know, to retrieve the leaves with the eggs on, and hatch and rear them indoors like one does with silk worms? The kids are starting to get a bit upset that their butterfly babies are all getting eaten by the time they are 1/2 inch long. Todays inspection only revealed 2 pillarcats that had managed to get to around the 1/2 inch mark....

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RE: Monarch Butterfly Babies... desperately need help

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Have you tried disposing of the sheild bugs? Using tweezers and just picking them off and dropping them into some really hot water?

How does milkweed go in a vase - if the plant can survive in a bit of water then you might be able to raise them indoors, but getting rid of the assassins might be a better option.

Good luck with this - it sounds as if you are doing a truly wonderful thing.

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RE: Monarch Butterfly Babies... desperately need help

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I did see this being done at a Buddhist retreat in NZ. The monks had rescued the eggs and set them indoors on potted plants of their 'chosen' food. Can you possibly transplant the plant they are on - not sure what milkweed is but if its small enough to pot it might be a proposition. Nature is astounding isn't it. Good luck with it.

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RE: Monarch Butterfly Babies... desperately need help

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Yes we have been trying to hand pick off some of the predatory bugs; they seem to have a very efficient bush telegraph when it comes to news of a smorgasboard though. I am going to give it a try rearing some of the butterfly caterpillars indoors; have got nothing to lose as they are all going to get eaten if they stay outside. I just hope all these assassins are going to be as efficient when it comes to dealing with all the undesirable caterpillars that will start to put in an appearance later in the year... cheers... Rosalie.

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RE: Monarch Butterfly Babies... desperately need help

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You can breed Monarch butterflies in captivity but you will have to give them fresh leaves every day or so.
Here is a webpage full of instructions...

Here is a link that might be useful: Breeding Monarch Buitterflies

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RE: Monarch Butterfly Babies... desperately need help

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Hi Rosalie

It's probably not nice to tell you to look somewhere else - but there seems to be a lot of experts in the butterfly forum

they have many of the same problems and you might find a lepidopterist that can help

cheers

tony

Here is a link that might be useful: butterfly forum

  
 

 

 


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