FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | AUGUST 2015 7
It's a boy! (You can tell by
two black dots on lower
wings.)
Just hatched monarch
drying wings.
Continued from previous page
Caterpillar in "J" position for 24 hours, prior to spinning chrysalis
The chrysalis right before the
butterfly emerges
The chrysalis
hugely, but they are amazingly active as well. They not only
wiggle and crawl, they also roll up into balls and roll down
inclines to reach their goals. They climb up and down plants,
across fences, across rocks and grass, and every night they find
a resting place where they remain motionless until daybreak.
When light comes and air warms, the prettily striped
caterpillars stir, and resume their progress to butterflyhood.
But sadly, all of this magnificence is greatly threatened.
Milkweed is being wiped out by spreading urban population,
illegal logging in Mexico and most especially by use of toxic
herbicides and weed killers. And this dwindling food supply is
having a devastating effect on the monarch population: it has
diminished by 90 percent over the last 25 years.
However, according to Monarch Watch, a coalition of
professionals and volunteers, growing even a small number
of milkweed plants in neighborhood gardens is helping to
combat the problem. And using no weed killer or an organic
weed killer allows for healthy plant growth. I have been happily
surprised to find that most people to whom I have spoken about
my caterpillar/butterfly watching and the attendant growing of
milkweed, have asked for seeds or more information.
Now they, and their grandchildren, are spending summer
hours watching nature at it most intriguing and fulfilling.
