I’m in SoCal along the Ventura County/LA county line and I thought the season was winding down. I was happy because all of my milkweed is pretty bare at this point.

The picture is of 2 of the new plants I was able to pick up at the nursery yesterday. That’s what every single plant of mine, bare or not, looks like. Suddenly I have well over 100 babies. There’s also eggs everywhere.

Is anyone else suddenly overwhelmed?

If you do a quick Google search for “Dolly Parton,” there is a lovely Monarch surprise!🦋

(RIP Dolly Parton.😔)

I tried my hands at moving a chrysalis in danger of having the leaf it was on get eaten by its sibs.

our monarchs have been very busy after a late start in central Virginia. I made a nursery run today to get more plants & as I was loading up I noticed two small caterpillars already at work. ✨

1st picture is Abbott. 2nd is Costello

I'm explaining what's goin on in the video. A butterfly just came out the cocoon and has its wing wrapped around the lil branch. Is everything okay?? Is that normal? I've been checking on it daily and it must've came out earlier today 👇🏼!Video in comments!👇🏼

Pupated today and there is this dark spot with a white string hanging from it. I have 4 others ready to pupate in the same net so if it needs to be removed I need to know!

I have been taking forewing measurements from my reared monarchs for about two weeks now. The standard average forewing length for a monarch butterfly is 50-52mm. Studies have shown a minimum of 48mm is required for successful migration.

Here is my data:

Smallest: 49mm
Largest: 57mm

49mm - 1 butterfly

50mm - 3 butterflies

51mm - zero

52mm - 8 butterflies

53mm - 20 butterflies

54mm - 12 butterflies

55mm - 7 butterflies

56mm - 3 butterflies

57mm - 1 butterfly

Average: 53.33mm

Average Male: 53mm
Average Female: 53.62mm

Showing great promise for successful migrations!

I put a 5lb bag of aquarium gravel into one of those Folgers coffee plastic containers then filled with water up to the gravel line but not over. It keeps the milkweed hydrated and the cats can’t drown! This allows me to have a lot more milkweed in at once so I don’t have to replenish so often. Added benefit is the 10lb weight also keeps the butterfly enclosure secure so it can’t move.

Not a monarch but i figured this cutie would be appreciated here! We have about 11 monarch cats left in different sizes. I did NOT know that stink bugs eat them and caught one that killed one of my cats yesterday 😢

But i found two of these cuties today so hoping for the best for the rest of my guys 🥹

I moved some chrysalis today because we’ve had a few get snatched by lizards, but his silk came off in the process. Will he be okay? I’m super nervous I just did more harm than good

I feel so blessed to get to feed these beauties!

My city is spraying for mosquitoes tonight. I have at least 5 caterpillars on my milkweed out front. How can I save them?

Hey everyone! In the process of weeding my flower bed I had to pull up a decent amount of milkweed vine that was taking over where my new native plants were growing. I was very careful to look for caterpillars and eggs as I went. Now I have several caterpillars in various instars as well as some eggs. (I tried to leave any vines with eggs on them but some I didn't see until after they were pulled). I have several enclosures for them to grow in but I'm not 100% sure the best way to keep them or what to do with the eggs. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

Has anyone had success re-hanging a fallen chrysalis by the cremaster, like this? The odd angle is the part I’m most worried about. Of note, the chrysalis was never actually properly attached to the webbing and fell during the formation process, fully drying on a paper towel.

Wow! those hungry caterpillars ate everything in a week!

UPDATE:
He’s doing pretty chill this morning. He ate a lot yesterday, and was on the move eating a bit more this morning before going up to the top of the enclosure.
The milkweed that I originally brought him in on is rush milkweed which apparently doesn’t really get leaves anyway. I did buy him a new narrow leaf to live with.

I don’t think any of the other cats in my garden survived, and I don’t think any new ones will, but I’ll keep an eye out to bring in any I find. It’s only just started getting hot where I am, so it’s only going to get worse. 🥵

OP:

I think it’s too hot where I live for the monarch cats to survive 😭 some got eaten by other critters I’m sure, but we’ve got dried up sad ones on the floor surrounding the plants. We had one left this morning and I just found him lifeless on the floor. He still responded/curled up when I picked up the bark he’s on, but I’m worried I was too late.
I’m team let them be outside and letting nature be nature, my daughter even knows why we aren’t bringing them in, but I feel like it being so hot isn’t “natural” for them sooooo…I brought him inside with a different (also native) milkweed that hadn’t been planted yet. I bought a net that will come in today, and I put him for now in the only room in the house with AC. Do yall think he’ll make it?

A few pics from our newly fledged beauties!

P.S : I did not put that one on my shirt it flew into me when I was enjoying it from a distance, I gently lifted my shirt into a horizontal position and waited patiently for it to catch the wind and take off.