I saw my first Monarch butterfly of the year 2 weeks ago. One lone Monarch butterfly.
For the past 10 years or so I've been raising Monarch butterflies for fun. WHO knows fun? This girl! The one with the calloused feet and pet butterflies.
It takes almost no effort to raise a butterfly from egg to winged creature and the process is astonishing to watch. If you like watching seeds sprout, wait'll you see a butterfly do the same thing.
Which brings me back to my first point. Only one butterfly this year. Normally I see a few by this time of year and if you think back to when you were a kid there were Monarch butterflies everywhere. We were filthy with butterflies as kids. But things have changed. And they've changed drastically over the past 365 days.
It isn't surprising that I've only seen one butterfly this year because in the past year alone ...
The Monarch Butterfly Population has dropped by 90%.
When you consider the fact that only 1-3% of butterflies make it to adulthood in the wild ... that's very few butterflies. In fact, as of this year ...
The Monarch Butterfly is close to being declared an endangered species.
The Monarch Butterfly!
So how did this happen? Well, mostly it's because their habitat and their food supply has been demolished. Monarchs live, feed and grow on milkweed. Builders put up subdivisions, malls and theatres in areas that were formerly fields. Fields filled with milkweed. Farmers mow down any milkweed around or on their properties to make way for wheat or other crops. Sometimes they mow the milkweed down just to keep it under control so it doesn't run into their cultivated fields. This past year also saw severe weather during the Monarch migration and a huge loss of habitat once they got to Mexico because of illegal logging in the forests.
So this past year was a perfect storm of poor conditions for the Monarch.
I didn't raise Monarchs last year because quite frankly most of my time was filled up with a minor nervous breakdown and coming up with imaginary revenge plots. And I wasn't going to do it this year just because I've done it so many times and I'm really busy living a happy live and coming up with imaginary revenge plots.
But when I saw that lone Monarch butterfly, I ran to the milkweed plants around my house (I leave them to grow specifically for the Monarch butterflies) and searched them for eggs. I only found 3 Monarch eggs, but I brought all 3 inside to save. One is staying with me, one is going to my sister Pink Tool Belt and one is going to her friend Wendy.
If you'd like to give raising a Monarch butterfly a shot (and I really think everyone should do it at least once in their lives) here is the 4 part tutorial I wrote 4 years ago on how to do it. It takes about a month in total and all you need is milkweed for food, a monarch egg or caterpillar (which you find on milkweed) and a glass container so you can see everything that's going on. And believe me when I tell you, you will NEVER see a more fascinating transformation. The metamorphosis of a Monarch Butterfly from egg to caterpillar to chrysalis to butterfly makes a Stephen King novel look about as weird as The Bobbsey Twins. How's that for a current reference?
Table of Contents
Part I
Part II
Part III
Part IV
Part V
Not the best photographs I've ever taken but it was 4 years ago. I didn't know how to use Photoshop then. Or a camera. Or even Instagram now that I think about it. How embarrassing.
If you're interested in learning more about how to raise a Monarch Butterfly take a look at the tutorials and give it a shot. (Just click on the picture or text)
That picture above shows me and one of the butterflies I raised a couple of years ago. After taking care of it for a month and watching it go from egg to winged creature, I walked outside, and held out my hand where it tentatively flapped its wings then fluttered to a lush and inviting tree overhead.
Then it was eaten by a bat.
Just kidding.
Help save the butterfly population. Because if you don't do it, who will? Also I don't know what to chase anymore. Trains seem much more dangero ..
Thank you for this post Karen! This is a very important subject for me. This coming December I am going to Mexico to see the monarchs in their overwintering sites. As an entomologist, it's a dream come true for me and I'm so excited, but also scared to see how badly the population is doing.
Hi Magali - Let me know how it turns out! I know a lot of people have decided to raise a butterfly from this post. My sister and I alone have raised 7 in the past month. :) ~ karen!
Ever since I read this post and the step-by-step guide to growing a monarch, I've been watching the roadsides and park borders like a hawk for milkweed. Is it just me or is it rather scarce around our parts (I'm just North of where you are)? I've made my husband stop the car so I could search what few plants I saw, all the while looking like a crazy person I'm sure, yet alas - no eggs. Did I miss the egg-laying time frame?
I'm also personally concerned about our other native pollinators, like bumblebees. We went for a camping trip out to Pinery Provincial Park and learned that the Rusty-Patched Bumblebee is now critically endangered in Canada and on the brink of extinction throughout its range (it used to be the 4th most common bee in S. Ontario). I've signed up as a "citizen scientist" on bumblebeewatch.org to keep my eyes peeled for all types of bumblebees! Every little bit helps.
Scratch that - yesterday I found 3 eggs and a caterpillar right around my house! Exciting!!
Thanks for this post. Im a mexican girl and I know for real the monarch butterflies are in real and great danger. So Im in, please grow a monarch butterfly... Save the monarch!
Thanks Ofelia! I'm happy to spread the word and thank you for joining in! I've given 3 to my sister to raise and I'm raising 3 right now. :) ~ karen!
I have had milkweed in my yard for years. Have also had caterpillars eating said milkweed, turning into butterflies, but not Monarchs. Last year I didn't even have those. This year saw 2 caterpillars eating my parsley. The milkweed is clear. Again, not Monarchs. So sad.
Butterflies use penis to gauge sex competition
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126903.400-butterflies-use-penis-to-gauge-sex-competition.html
Thought you needed a hook for all those people who came for porn from a week or so ago due to the sex and chicks post. Content marketing is all about creating a consistent experience for your readers.
Just amazing!!
I live 5 kms. from Point Pelee which was a stop over for migrating Monarchs forever. The Monarchs have pretty much disappeared from the Point now. I have seen maybe a half of a dozen so far this year. Last year, I had a pot of dill weed growing on my back deck which was completely consumed by monarch caterpillars in a matter of a day. I was sad to lose the dill but happy to see the old familiar striped guys.
I'm feeling quite blessed after reading the comments. We had so many monarch caterpillars on one small milkweed plant that we had to relocate some to new milkweed plants so that they wouldn't starve. We watched one butterfly drying his wings. (I didn't know that butterflies had necks and could turn their heads. It was kinda freaky.)
We harvested some seeds from a different kind of Asclepias which grows bigger so we can feed more 'pillars. We also bought some more plants to feed the ravenous hordes.
Thank you for the tutorials.
We have a few in our yard, though we don't have milkweed. I don't know the name of the bush they seem to enjoy, but we love watching them. The local hummingbird likes the same bush! We rarely saw one in NY, but it is nice to see them in PA.
It's been 13 years, a house, a dog, a cat, a husband, and three kids since my horrifying, heartbreaking, breakup, and I still plot revenge. It generally happens in the dream state, when I'm not conscious of my malice, but still. Now that I've typed that, I'm not sure if it's consolation or a really good reason to seek therapy. Either way, to hell with them. I can honestly, without a doubt say, THANK GOD I'm here and not there.
In reference to the actual post, I see some links to obtaining milkweed. I'm on it.
If you find another egg, I'd love to try this.
PHEW thought the pink tool belt lady & I were getting feathery skinny legged cluck clucks.
I will try my best to hover over all the milkweeds to raise monarchs. I am lousy I mean real lousy at watching any plant...my one & only zucchini plant that grew two humongous zukes...which I think would be a good swap. You may think that a dinosaur walked by your garden in the next few days.
I TOTALLY missed the point of this comment Wendy, lol!!! That thing is 5.5 pounds!!! I'm not sure whether to cook it or burp it. ~ karen!
I had been thinking about doing this for a while -- I do have lots of milkweed in my yard, specifically for the monarchs. I just went outside and on the very first plant I looked on, there was a little caterpillar wandering around (about 1/2" long)! I've brought it in and made a little home for it.
There are lots of yellow eggs on the plants, too, and some of them seem to be hatching some kind of tiny fly. Any idea what that is?
The town where I live has had a butterfly raising program for a few years. It is part, a large part, of The Community Education Center.
http://www.elktonbutterflies.com/butterfly-pavilion.html
Even so, I have seen very few butterflies in my yard about 4 miles away. The tree that used to be covered with a variety of them had just a few when in full bloom. Quite disturbing to hear that this not just trouble here in my garden.
I'd never given monarchs much thought but I just finished reading Flight Behaviour by Barbara Kingsolver and now I'm obsessed. Does anyone know of a nursery in the GTA that sells milkweed or milkweed seeds?
I loved the book. Read it as a book group choice. Lots of discussion about the decrease of butterflies and bees in our group.
Hi Danielle,
You may want to try Sheridan Nurseries. They have several locations around the GTA and when I did a plant search I saw that they do carry Butterfly Weed (Asclepias Tuberosa) which is in the milweed family, so they may carry Common or Swamp Milkweed as well. You'll just have to check out the store.
Good to know - the Mississauga/Oakville location is very careful about using Neonicotinoid pesticides...you can ask the location nearest you.
Cheers!
I love this post. It reminds me so much of my wedding. Instead of throwing rice or blowing bubbles, we released Monarch butterflies. It was truly the most beautiful, blessed thing I've ever seen. I received the caterpillars a few weeks prior to the wedding. We placed each in its own cardboard box and then to a warm, dark, quiet closet to hatch. Although I fretted that they'd all hatch in time, it was an amazing sight as they were all released as we exited the church.
After looking at all the previous posts about raising Monarch's, I went out to my prairie garden and, lo and behold...a caterpillar exactly like the one in your photos! That made my day! What timing you have, Karen!!!
Milk weeds attract Monarch Butterflies like magnet. I didn't have Monarch Butterflies in my garden till I grew a milk weed plant two years ago. Last winter out of desperation I paid $9.95 each, bought four pots of milk weed plants from local nursery because I had two starving caterpillars lived on my wilting milk weed plant. This Spring and Summer I have been seeing several Monarch Butterflies visiting my back yard almost everyday because I have several milk weed plants and butterfly bushes in the garden.
TO BRING BUTTERFLIES BACK, PLANT MILK WEED PLANTS AND BUTTERFLY BUSHES.
ALSO KEEP RACOON AWAY FROM GARDEN, RACOONS EAT CATERPILLARS.
Just as I was thinking that these were stunning photographs, you said they weren't your best. I think they are fantastic pictures of the process.
Our Monarch butterfly population is down drastically. It isn't the milkweed source down here. As I understand it, they fly back and forth to Central America and their habitat down there is being destroyed.
I miss lightening bugs. They were numerous when I was a child in the southern US, but I haven't seen one in years. My children and grandchildren are living in a very different world than the one I was raised in. The Internet---good. Global communication---good. The destruction of nature to produce what we "need"---a bummer.
I was in southern Ohio recently and there were loads of lightning bugs there. We don't have them much in Canada (too cold).
I think it depends where you are Alice. Where I live I see fireflies every night. And my friend was shooting a commercial over the weekend in the forests around my town and she had great video of them. ~ karen!
Cool! Maybe it's just the big city that doesn't have them...
Ahhh..plotting sweet revenge! The best revenge is living well and I think you have it already!
I raised a monarch when I was a kid....but some how the caterpillar escaped in my dad's work room. Imagine the surprise when it hatched in the winter... It died of course.
Anywho....I have noticed that all bugs are MIA. I don't use insecticides other than Diatomaceous Earth, I will pick off bugs and I pull weeds.