Just when I thought the season was over, I found another caterpillar! Fifth instar, quite large, but it was munching on a seedling butterfly weed that was only about 4 inches tall and no common milkweed or even other butterfly weed plans nearby. So I scooped him/her up and put them in my rearing cage with some fresh milkweed leaves. That was on 9/2 and she ate for a couple of days then was up top hanging down by mid-afternoon of the 4th.
I’ve been wanting to see the transformation into a chrysalis so spent a good part of the next day sitting by the cage and reading. No dice. This morning? Still hanging in the “J” shape, then around 11:00 AM was hanging straight down. Uh oh, I lost a caterpillar last year at that stage, possibly to a fungal infection. Went in to make lunch and my wife checked on it and said it’s wiggling. Well, it had already shed and was in the green chrysalis color! Those tricky ba$tards, they know when I’m not looking and quick change.
I did get a few pictures of the early formation. You can still see the caterpillar markings and the normal chrysalis shape hasn’t been established yet:
The worries of a parent aren’t over yet: still have at least 9-10 days before emerging as an adult and likely more due to the cooler temps. May need to bring the cage indoors for some warmth!
But nice to have an encore performance!mon
