Helping Our Flying Flowers, a Mission for Monarchs - Part One

By Kristy Belaney

Few things in life are as joyful as watching a butterfly in flight. They seem to dance in the air to a song only they can hear with no rhyme or reason to the direction that they take. The moment you spot one, you become entranced and childlike wonder seems to emerge from deep within your soul. Their beauty begs to be chased and when they stop to land on a nearby flower, you feel like you have hit the butterfly jackpot. You approach with your camera, eager to capture the moment forever in a photograph. But before the shutter sounds, that flying flower is off dancing again, floating away until it becomes just petals in the wind. Butterflies are indeed magical. Their entire existence undergoes periods of change and yet they live without any fear. From egg, to caterpillar, to pupa to amazing butterfly, there is much to be learned by these captivating creatures.

"If you want these orange and black stunners to visit your garden, it is really quite simple.

 Plant milkweed."

Butterflies and moths make up the second largest order of insects behind beetles. There are more than 20,000 different species of butterflies in the world and over 130,000 species of moths. Out of them all, undoubtedly one of the most easily recognized is the Monarch Butterfly. If you want these orange and black stunners to visit your garden, it is really quite simple. Plant milkweed.

Monarch on Asclepias incarnata

Monarch butterflies require milkweed to complete their life cycle. Adults will gather nectar and feed from many different flowers and plants but they can only lay their eggs on milkweed and the larvae can only eat milkweed. Without milkweed, there would be no monarchs. Do not be deterred by the title, milkweed is not a weed at all! There are over 100 species of milkweeds all carrying the name “Asclepias” in front of it. If you choose to plant this very important flower in your garden it is also equally important to choose the right variety native to your region and one that is suitable for the space that you have. For example, common milkweed, or asclepias syriaca, is a tall, somewhat invasive milkweed that you may be familiar with growing along roadsides and in open fields. This milkweed spreads by rhizomes underground and can be difficult to manage in a small area. However, if you have the space for it, by all means plant it! The fragrance of the blossoms is amazing and the monarchs and other pollinators love it! But in reality, most people will not have large spaces to work with and their small gardens need tamer varieties.

Asclepias syriaca

There are 13 species of milkweed native to Ohio so there are plenty of options. Try to select a few different species, for color/texture variety but also for varying bloom times. That way you will be rewarded with flowers throughout the growing season as well as be providing nectar sources to pollinators for longer periods as well. Some attractive, compact plants that are a great choice for residential gardens and landscapes include asclepias incarnata, or swamp milkweed, asclepias purpurascens or purple milkweed, asclepias tuberosa or butterfly weed and asclepias exaltata, or poke milkweed. As long as you purchase milkweed plants or seeds free from pesticides the monarchs will thank you for it. Please always ask the nursery of your choosing if they have treated their plants with pesticides. If they source their plants from other growers, it is imperative that they also know if pesticides have been used before being shipped to them. Suppliers use pesticides regularly because not many consumers are keen to purchase a plant with holes in the leaves. Pesticides may make for prettier looking plants, but if the aesthetic factor is all you are concerned about, you and the insects would be better off if you simply bought silk flowers.

Orange blossoms of the compact
Asclepias tuberosa

"The single most contributing factor in the decline of monarch populations is the loss of the milkweed plant."

To put it bluntly, monarchs need our help. There are several factors working against them, including the mass destruction of forest land in Mexico where they overwinter, changing climate extremes and pesticide use. However, the single most contributing  factor in the decline of monarch populations is the loss of the milkweed plant. Over the past 16 years, monarch butterfly numbers have experienced a dramatic decline with numbers at over wintering sites in 1997 at 1.2 million adults down to just over 211,000 in 2013. Not surprisingly, the decrease in monarchs coincides with the clearing of habitats naturally containing milkweed. Development encroachment, unnecessary mowing and the widespread use of pesticides along roadsides and farmlands have decimated milkweed plants. With this, the monarchs have fewer plants to lay their eggs, thus ensuring the new generation of butterflies.

Imagine a female monarch carrying hundreds of eggs. She flies tirelessly for miles upon miles in search of a milkweed patch, determined to fulfill her life purpose. With no milkweed in sight, her strength fading away and time closing in, she finally lands. Only she does not land to lay her eggs as she had set out to do, but to die. It is a very sad thought. And that thought is becoming the reality more and more.

A single monarch egg

After about 5 weeks of having two swamp milkweed plants in the ground, I was graced with the visit of a female monarch. She was the first one I had seen all season and as if that was not a blessing enough, she laid 5 eggs on my plants. Monarch eggs are very small, about the size of a pinhead. They can be found by looking on the undersides of milkweed leaves. The eggs are creamy white to clear in color and as the larvae matures in about 4 to 5 days, a small black dot will appear to be poking through. This is the small caterpillars head about to emerge. Once the caterpillar has hatched, its first meal will be the egg. The caterpillar will then proceed to eat the milkweed leaves and stems, growing in stages, called instars, over a period of 2-3 weeks depending on climate.

"I learned that planting milkweed was a crucial step in helping monarch populations, but that you could also take that help to the next level by easily raising the caterpillars indoors."

I monitored my little caterpillars everyday and spent some time reading about their life cycles. I learned that planting milkweed was a crucial step in helping monarch populations, but that you could also take the help to the next level by easily raising the caterpillars indoors. This method increases their likelihood to reaching adulthood from 10% to over 90% by eliminating the threat from predators like wasps, ants and birds. Knowing I could not bare to lose these caterpillars, I decided to try raising them indoors. I found a plastic salad container in the recycling bin, washed it out and poked holes in the lid from the inside out with a needle. I then lined the bottom of the container with dampened paper towels, ( I used filtered water to wet the paper towels because I am overly cautious), and went out to gather my little caterpillars.

A first instar caterpillar

I found four of them, each attached to individual leaves happily munching away. I simply pinched the leaf they were on off at the stem and placed the leaves in the container. Eggs can also be collected this way if you start raising at that stage. If possible it is best not to directly touch young caterpillars. Handling them at this stage can result in unintentional damage or mortality. If you cannot avoid touching them, another option is to use an unused, dampened artist brush to gently lift them into the container. I collected some extra leaves for them to eat and placed the container on the porch out of direct sun. The milkweed leaves were replaced daily, as the caterpillars will not eat dried out leaves. If you must gather your milkweed at one time, the leaves can be kept fresh by placing them inside a ziplock bag and stored in the refrigerator. I also replaced the dampened paper towels lining the container daily. Caterpillars eat a lot, and what goes in must come out. Caterpillar feces is known as “frass”. You will find that at first, this is seen as tiny black flecks on the leaves and paper towel. You do not want the caterpillars ingesting this for obvious health reasons. As they grow, so does the frass. Caterpillars produce enormous amounts of it! They also eat a ton of milkweed! I was not prepared for this and had to eventually purchase additional plants to provide for their voracious appetites.

Caterpillar frass on towel

As mentioned earlier the caterpillars grow in stages known as instars. They go through five instars before forming their chrysalis or pupa. During these stages the caterpillar will normally seek out a less active area, usually at the top of the container or along the sides to molt or shed its old skin. Sometimes you can see their black heads appear to look like a button that is about to come off its body. This period is a fragile time for the caterpillar and they are best left undisturbed. They may stop eating and not move much for an entire day. This is normal. You may also notice a strange black and clear transparent film behind the caterpillar. That is the old skin that it has shed and most times, the caterpillar will consume this.

A freshly molted caterpillar

Space eventually became an issue and a larger container to house the caterpillars was in order. Overcrowding promotes disease as well as creates stress for the caterpillars so I searched online and purchased a special butterfly rearing enclosure. These enclosures are sometimes referred to as butterfly pop up tents and most run under $20. They are designed with breathable mesh or fine screen with easy access to the inside for cleaning frass and replacing/watering milkweed. Personally I went with a pvc framed screen enclosure by Apogee called Reptarium. There are several sizes available depending on your needs and for me this was the most attractive and practical design. After a simple assembly, I had a safe place to house my growing caterpillars into adulthood. I placed four small potted milkweed plants inside along with the caterpillars and it has been easy going since. If you can recall, I said I had collected four caterpillars. There were five eggs so I assumed that a predator may have gotten to the fifth one. I checked every so often on the milkweed plantings in the yard and was happy to eventually find the fifth caterpillar alive and well. I call him my little Houdini. He is smaller than the other four but seems to be on a mission to catch up with his brothers and sisters.

Reptarium

"Although it seems its life is on pause, tremendous transformations are taking place. A butterfly is about to be born."

It has been 3 weeks since that female monarch laid her eggs on my milkweed plants. Watching these caterpillars grow to this point has been extremely interesting and rewarding knowing I have been a helping hand in more ways than one to their survival. The journey is only at the half way point and soon enough these striking black, white and yellow chubby caterpillars will undergo yet another enormous change. When the squirming and wriggling caterpillar becomes still and morphs into that hanging jade green jewel, the real magic begins. Although it seems its life is on pause, tremendous transformations are taking place. A butterfly is about to be born.

*All images are my own and are subject to copyright