Okay, so I dusted off my hands and got out the camera again. It was time to search for more caterpillars on their way to butterflyhood.
Just how far can a caterpillar crawl? Pretty danged far! The monarchs eat only milkweed, so I know where they had to originate. I found a cluster of three of them, already in chrysalis form, about 15 feet away from the milkweed stand.
 
You may notice something about these. They're very shiny and a lot more solid than the first one I found. The covering on that one looked almost thin in comparison, and grew thinner as the days passed. There were the same golden metallic spots but it quickly lost the smooth opacity of these. That's gotten me to thinking. Maybe the first one wasn't actually going to hatch. That sure helps me feel better about losing it! 
 I also located another caterpillar hanging upside down in its comma shape, this time on the back of the redwood catnip planter. I took pix yesterday (left) and this morning (right). There wasn't much change overnight; I suspect the cool weather may have slowed down its metamorphosis. It appears to be acquiring a green-gold metallic sheen. I hope you can see that in these shots. (The most recent one, to the right, has a drop of rain on it.)
I hope this one develops nicely right where it is. There's absolutely no reason for it to be disturbed--it's on the side of the planter away from the street and also several feet away from any weeds--out of reach of an overzealous weedwhacker! I'm going to check it in a few hours to see if there's any further change. The cool weather (temps in the 60s) may have slowed down the process to where I can get photos as the metamorphosis occurs. Hugs,
Liddy |
How neat.