Daily Pictures #93

We came from here:

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1223389/

This is a photo from last season of the BST that emerged from my outside closet in April.

Nice photo--they are so beautiful when they 1st emerge.

Thanks for the new thread

Thanks Amanda for the new thread. We're experiencing our first wintery weather today. No new pic. but this one from the summer. Hope you had a nice thanksgiving with family Bruce and Amanda.

2 beauties! I hope to have some of those cruising around for the spring.

Russell

While we're posting pictures of swallowtails, I love this one from 2010. :)

Hi,
I came across two pics on FLICKR while researching a camera I'm considering. The gentleman is from Australia, but these were taken while vacationing in Arizona.

He asked if anyone knew the I.D. of the butterflies. You won't be able to answer directly unless you're logged in to FLICKR, so I thought I could pass on the info. I would, of course, give the credit to the DG members.


Pic #1
http://www.flickr.com/photos/62434662@N05/6409832917/in/pool-dmc-fz50

Pic # 2 (he said this one was about 3/4")
http://www.flickr.com/photos/62434662@N05/6409825249/in/pool-dmc-fz50


Thanks in advance!!!

n.a.n. The first one looks like a Question Mark bf. maybe. The second one I needed help. Amanda, that is a nice pair of Swallowtails!!!

I posted on Flicker. I think the first one is a West Coast Lady. And Maybe a Marine Blue on the second?

Thanks Lily_love & Mrs_Ed!!!

Marna, I spent some time looking at your pictures on FLICKR. They're BEAUTIFUL . . .you are really talented!!

Nuts wonderful pics.
My husband and I were sitting out on Sunday enjoying the wonderful weather and several Monarchs were still laying eggs. A sulfur tried to visit the Cassia tree, but the Monarch chased it off, seems to want to dominate the garden. Didn't seem to mind the GF's...but if they came close to the milkweed it too was chased off. Anyway it was all a pretty interesting show. Had some cooler weather come in yesterday, so may have chased them further south for a bit.

Awww, thanks nuts!

Good news!

The only thing now standing between me and Carphephorus corymbosus is a SASE! :D

Will update as I progress.

A.

That is good news, Amanda. By chance, a friend of mine who is an entomologist is heading "home" to Florida the week of Christmas. He was telling me he was going to get some seeds of a great nectar plant in his mom's yard that swallowtails come to by droves. You guessed it -- the very same plant, Carphephorus corymbosus. Assuming of course that he can find it, he might be able to supply me with seed in case you don't get very many. I'll keep you posted. I thought it quite the coincidence.

Dale Clark
Dallas County Lepidopterists' Society
www.dallasbutterflies.com

Good, good! The more, the merrier. :)

Coincidence of the great kind!

Waiting for this batch to come via my SASE sent to our generous donor. ;)

I know everyone is busy...but yesterday I went for a hike...I got seeds! Dmail me if interested. I don't have too many.

woo hoo. congrats.

Lovely!

Did you get enough to pass around? Anyone who still needs it - I should have mine soon as well. :)

I'll post when it gets here to see how many trades there maybe. Then please Dmail me. I wonder about germination rates and whether like asters many seeds need to be sown. I will have to look into propagation treatment as well.

Any thoughts Dale or Sheila?

A.

Not me. I usually don't try to start anything from seeds enough to know.

I've been searching and found nothing in print. Think I would wintersow this one just to be sure.

Yes I think I have plenty to pass around...I have never mailed seeds so you will have to let me know how it works. I am not going to be able to mail until after mid Jan. Going to be gone for a bit, but will be glad to mail to anyone that wants some...just let me know. I will say these grow in very sandy soil where I get them and in pretty much full sun.
Sherri

Sherri, I d-mailed you. I will do just about anything for my butterflies. ..

Hey all - haven't posted in a while - hope you all enjoyed the holidays!

I have received my FL paintbrush seeds too, so if Sherri runs out there's more here.

Happy New Year. :)

A.

Hello everyone... I have not been on this forum for some time. I raised Luna cats and Monarch cats during the summers of 2007 and 2008, but have not been able to do so for the past couple years. I would like to do so again this year. If anyone could give me info on where I can purchase Luna eggs this Spring, please d-mail me!

It's kinda funny, but even up until last summer, Luna moths would visit our balcony regularly (we live in a third-story apartment facing the woods) this is where I raised and released all my moths. Can they still have a sense like that generations later? Maybe I'm crazy to think so....

Thanks in advance!
Have a blessed week!
Karen

Hi Karen, I don't know where you can purchase the eggs, but if you find a female you can put her in a large paper bag over night, and the bag will have eggs all over the inside by morning.

Not much going on here, but I did discover a monarch cat today on what's left of my tropical milkweed. The plant isn't looking too good, but seems to have attracted at least one visitor.

Russell



This message was edited Jan 28, 2012 10:53 AM

O my gosh......can't imagine seeing a cat in January!! How nice that would be!

That is great to see Russell. Makes me hope all those late arrivals found somewhere in TX to lay eggs on the way south.

I only had my phone when this guy came by. I caught a glimpse of a hummingbird moth right at dusk, but couldn't get a pic of it.

Russell

Wow Russell - what a treat (?!). Are you bringing him/her inside?

Thanks for sharing.

A.

Is this a thread for last year's pictures or ?

These are current pics from yesterday. I live in a subtropical area on the Texas coast. We have been extremely warm this winter and I still have many plants in bloom. Yesterday I saw the red admiral pictured above, a grey hairstreak, a Gulf Fritillary, several queens and some monarchs nectaring in my back yard. This is all very strange because last year at this time, all of my plants were dead or dormant from the cold blasts we had.

Amanda - I think I am going to let nature take it's course, but if we have any really cold weather threatening, I will bring them inside. I discovered another cat on the same plant as I continued to look yesterday.

Should be a great spring for butterflies, especially since some areas are receiving a little rain here and there.

Anyone else seeing any activity?

Russell

That's great. Just popping in to see what ya'll were doing. No activity here but we have been much warmer than normal.

All I'm seeing are stink bugs and lady bugs inside here and there. My BST cats are still snug in their cocoons, but with temps on Feb 1 going up to 70, I might think about moving them to the basement where they'll stay at or below 50 deg.

A.

Last week while temp. was unseasonably warm here, I got a bad case of spring fever....so I went and visit my fav. local nursery. There at the nursery I saw a couple sulphers flitting about. Poor butterflies will suffer no doubt. Temp. dropped back down to the low 20'ish last night. Yike!

Wow Yakmon that is so neat to have cats this early...I am seeing a couple Monarchs everyday in the garden, still have a couple lanky milkweeds blooming that I really want to cut down but they are coming for the nectar. I did notice that one of the bushes that I cut down and is now growing back has some flower buds starting...so soon as that has flowers I'll cut the others down. I think these Monarchs live in my garden...they are out here everyday and have been all winter. Some sulphers and lots of long tailed skippers.

Same here sunkissed. I am pretty sure we have resident monarchs and queens around here year round, weather permitting of course. I read this article at http://monarch-butterfly.info/Migration.html and it said, "The Monarchs east of the Rockies basically have a destination of the Sierra Madre Mountains in Mexico, although a smaller population winters along the southeastern coastal regions of Texas. Many Monarch Butterflies are seen in Florida during the winter, but these may not migrate and seem to enjoy their year around resident status in the sunshine state."

Whatever the reason, I am always happy to see them cruising around.

Russell