pics!

Rhonda

Looks very happy. The cats ate my passiflora again. Not a single leaf left.

Rhonda: I would bring it in in a heartbeat. :) I think your enclosures are large enough to accommodate. I keep my monarch cats in separate jugs around the house (1-gallon clear plastic water jugs -- tops sliced off and vented at the top w/ netting/screening...leftover aida cloth from years of unfinished cross stitch projects. :p )

I jam a milkweed branch into a wet paper towel blob, then wrap that in plastic tied w/ a rubber band. Branch and cat(s) go into the jug. You could do this if you want to keep this new little guy contained a bit.

Rhonda, Yes, because it won't be disturbing
(bumping into and walking across)
the other residents.

Thanks Javi and Four. I just found another very plump cat that I will bring in also. I'm thinking that the Eastern Black Swallowtail enclosure will work best since it only has a few chrysalis. In addition, I had added sticks for them to attach to and the Goldrim has a very similar, albeit larger, chrysalis. I have a fat vase with the flower frog on top that should work for pipevine cuttings (I'll stuff cotton into the holes around the stems so there's no possibility that the cats can get down inside and drown).

I came inside just now after having collected another dozen
into a too-small container with some leaves,
intending to transfer them into a large container.
Half an hour later, when I opened the small container,
one caterpillar had become a fully-formed chrysalis,
lying among the leaves and the other cramped passengers.

Wow four, that's great! I just put 2 small vases of leaves in water (with cotton balls around the neck) in the Eastern Black Swallowtail cage since they are all now chrysalis. I brought in the 5 biggest cats still on their leaves and put them in the enclosure. 2 of these guys are very close to chrysalis stage.

I love the cotton ball technique, Rhonda. Gonna try that!

Yes, for sure.

Javi and Bea, I can't take credit for coming up with the cotton ball trick. Someone on the butterfly forum mentioned it but I don't remember who.

One of the big cats attached earlier today in the enclosure and this evening I noticed that it had formed its chrysalis. The others can't be far behind :)

p.s. - these pics were taken this morning before I refreshed the leaves.

Rhonda's Butterfly Farm - that's where you live. I hope Joe knows what a lucky man he is.

Hod-a-mighty-damn ! Ah been stompin' all these caterpillars for so long,...wondering all the time where were the butterflies the nursery said would evolve ! Ah blame my clueless upbring'n in South Carolina !

Sorry y'all !

Beautiful photos, Rhonda!

Thanks everyone! Well, the 4 (typo when 5 was previously stated) cats have all formed their chrysalis. Interestingly, the 3 on branches or the wood that I put in the enclosures are brown. But, the one that formed on a stem of pipevine with leaves is green! Is this coincidence or does their environment affect the color of the chrysalis?

The immediately adjacent background.
Dark predisposes brown, light predisposes green.

Thanks Four!

Hey all! The first chrysalis eclosed this morning! Here's a few pics of the butterfly hanging up to dry. i'm going to have to research how to tell the differences in the sexes.

Once It's ready to be released I'll take some more shots. My first ever cage raised Polydamas...woo hoo!!!

Congratulations!

Rhonda, you make good photos. How do you get the white background
without overexposure, and without the camera's darkening everything
(its automatic prevention of overexposure) ?

Beautiful, Rhonda!

Thanks everyone! I wanted to get some good shots of it when I released it late afternoon but it was so anxious to fly freely that it shot away the minute I tried to sit it on a flower. Oh well, there's 3 more that should eclose the next day or two.

Four,

It was early morning and very cloudy and I had to shoot the pics inside a white mesh enclosure that sits in front of a white sided house on the shaded lanai, so I had to shoot rather differently than I normally would.

Here's the specs:

Canon 7D with Canon 28-70 2.8 lens (44.8 - 112 mm with 1.6 crop factor considered)

Canon 580 EX II flash set on ETTL and -2 with Omni Bouce diffuser and aimed directly at butterfly

1600 ISO, 1/200 (butterfly moved very little, most movement was from slight breeze), 5.6

Evaluative exposure metering (meters entire scene with emphasis on what is being focused on) and white balance set to cloudy day

Now, I could have probably gotten just as good or better picture with camera set on Auto, but I like to have full control to play around with exposure, bokeh, etc. And with digital, you have that luxury. I'm weird like that LOL

Thanks.

Fearing damage to butterfliy's vision, I never flash.

Four, normally I don't use flash when taking photos of butterflies. But, under the low light circumstances, without a flash there would be no details in the butterfly. I don't think that a flash, stepped down and with a thick plastic diffuser over the end, would damage a butterfly's eyes. They are in much brighter sunlight in their everyday life. Anyway, I sure hope I didn't do any damage.

But, under the low light circumstances, without a flash there would be no details in the butterfly.

Set the ISO way up. You shouldn't need flash for that, not with current cameras that are fine at speeds like ISO 6400.

Great pics, BTW.

Writersblock,

Thanks for the input :) Yes, my camera will shoot very well in low light with 2.8 lens and iso of 3200...6400 (or higher) and I RARELY take wildlife pics with a flash. However, with the very little light I had coming....all from the back (taken around 6:30 am on a very dark and dreary morning on a covered lanai) ..... I would have had a flat, dull pic without the flash.

Normally, I would wait for it to get a little brighter before taking pics, but I was anxious to get some pics before it was ready to be released. All of the monarchs and Eastern blacks I have raised didn't eclose until 9 or so but this Polydamas and the one that eclosed today were already out when I checked at 6 this morning so no clue what time they actually eclosed.

All,

Here's a couple of pics of the one I released today. Dang thing wouldn't spread its wings until right as it took off. I think they have the most beautiful under wing pattern of all my butterflies! I've included a closeup of the wing scales. They shine like precious metal in the sunlight.

Red porterweed

Thanks for sharing your pics, Rhonda -- breathtaking. Many of my pics are blurry because I'm usually wiggling around trying to avoid mosquitos nipping on my legs! :p

You're very welcome and thanks! You're pics are great :) Aren't those mosquitoes awful?!!

How beautiful! Thanks for sharing, Rhonda! Is it always that butterflies eclose in the morning? Feels like it with the ones I have seen. Makes sense so they can go about their butterfly business during daytime. Does that mean moth eclose at night? My Polyphemus has been in the cocoon for about 10 days now. It’s still in the oak, not in a cage. Just wondering if I should start checking on it before dark.

Thanks Iris! I've only started raising them in enclosures this summer, but all have eclosed in the morning. I keep them in the enclosure for at least 4 hours before releasing. I don't know about moths but I would think it would make sense that since they are nocturnal they would eclose in the early evening.

FWIW, my BSTs eclosed early in the morning -- usually after dawn, but by 8 a.m. Giants like to sleep in a bit, and have been poking out around 9 a.m. :) Neither of the two types seem to want to hang around for several hours, as they start doing the let me outta here flapping within a couple of hours.

I have had Monarchs at many times, incl 1am, and 4pm. Most at usual times.

This I had read a few days ago because I am raising Luna moths:
"Morning emergence allows time for expansion and drying of the wings
prior to the evening flight period."

Released the last 2 Polydamas today. These two emerged before I got up, just like the other two. They are early risers when compared to my monarch and EBSs.

Here's 2 of my favorite pics. The red porterweed is quite popular with the butterflies.