My faith in humankind has been restored on this beautiful Lord's Day! As I prepare to go to Church & worship my God above, the one who has been taken out of schools, courthouses, & many homes in this day & time, it is so good to see a great bunch of people that are 'back to the basics I was brought up with, in rural NC. I feel that my love for nature & the 'calling to raise b'flies' has been given to me from God, it is the greatest therapy for a person that lives in daily agonizing pain, & I have done that since '82. It has gotten me off of the sofa, looking at soaps. Never was one to pop pills, though there were pills given by the various drs, for Lupus pain, Fibromyalgia pain, which is unrelenting, pain from 3 failed lower back surgeries, & so on. But I can go outside, among my plants, (with a very moderate amount of pain medication), which have always been a hobby all my adult life, & find a peace, unlike any other. Seeing the seeds planted, growing each day, & the growth spurt after the evening t-shower, more than if I had given a good dose of fertilizer, knowing the purity of the water released from the heavens above has a growing power unlike anything man can make. I am not a fanatic, but I do find a special inner peace watching the creation emerging from the chrysalis, knowing it "went in as a caterpillar", came out as a beautiful creation, & that amazing change was done by One greater than I or anyone I know, on this earth in the flesh, today. We all are doing our part to make this world a better place to live in. We are, I believe trying to help get back to that time when the earth was a cleaner place; before the dirt & smut was so in control. I can remember when a young teen guy wouldn't go out without his jeans being starched & ironed, with that sharp crease, & that button down collar wasn't just right. Some of you probably don't remember those days. But in sharp contrast, the more ragged, & dirtier they can look, the better they like it. No more neat clean hair styles, but unkept unruly, & dirtier they look the more "in" they are. I am not being judgemental, to each to his own. But to get out among the plants, gives me a sense of being in contact with something good & clean, no matter how bad the pain, or what is on my mind, I can find a sense of peace unlike any other place, during the normal weekday. I enjoy my Church & what I find there, but I feel I bring part of that home with me, in scripture I hear, sometimes it is reflected in my activities outside during the week. None comes to mind at the moment, but God is so good, to give us these beautiful creatures, & place the love in our hearts to want to help them. To go beyond planting the flowers, but to go that step further that some don't understand. Let them take one egg, watch it go through the stages of growth, into the pupa, then the beautiful chrysalis of the Monarch, especially, like a piece of jade that a master artisian sculpted, & flecked with gold, I sat in total awe when I saw my 1st one, & then to watch when it gets transparent, & see the new creature inside. And, on to the final stage, when that beauty of the spread drying wings is present, they are magestic. Nobody can tell me that came as a result of the 'big bang theory'! Not even sure what they say made the ocean that this big bang or whatever it was supposed to have been. Some magical force? No, a Creator, that loved us enough, & I won't go any further, but we are all giving nature some help that the world has taken away. And we wonder why there are guns in schools, & knives.. I well remember the shock in our small town when the "No guns or knives allowed on school property" sign went up! The very thought of this was shocking, & then the rest is history. We are doing our part to help keep our world a better place to live. I don't know of too many men or ladies who raise b'flies who shot their c-store operator, or robbed the bank, or turned out to be serial killers. Didn't mean to go on so, but I see God Almighty in every butterfly that I release, & I thank Him for giving me the 'want to' to do this hobby. I just found a picture that I took of my first BST & a little saying I felt inspired to write "For by watching the phases of the butterfly, from the egg, to the caterpillar, all the way tp the final stage, the beautiful butterfly; surely we see the Hand of God at work, before our eyes, in today's world, as in the days of old, and appreciate even more His Wonderous Love for us daily." The photo is old, & the ink of the writing is a bit smeared, but it is so special to me. This was before I knew anything about butterflies & the terms, etc. Love to you all & In God I do trust..monarchs

Hi Karen. Most butterflies generally will not eat for a day or 2 right after emerging. So, I would not be concerned with that. Monarchs have trouble flying when it is cool, cloudy, and windy, and rainy. They migrate with northerly fronts that come in, helping them to move south, provided that the temps are not too cold. Monarchs can not fly at temps lower than 55 degrees. Hopefully, the ones that you released found some shelter somewhere, and were able to take off when the weather was more feasible. I've had some late emerged that started to take off, turn around and come back to wait for better weather. There is a fine window of opportunity that is the best time for Monarchs to migrate. See post Monarch migration map for peak time. Those that emerge later have a lesser chance of making it to Mexico. They may live out their lives in your yard. It is extemely hard to raise Monarchs in captivity in the winter. It is not uncommon to find Monarch cats and chrys. when the temps have gotten cooler. You probably had some warm weather a few weeks ago, and had a worn female Monarch, too old to migrate, still laying eggs. It is sad, but their chances of survival are not great. You could bring them in, warm them up, raise them to where they are ready to emerge, but be unable to fly due to temps being too cold, and food sources not being available. Enjoy them while you have them, and look forward to next summer. :)

Leafhead, I like your thinking re: "vaccines" and acquired or aided immunity to OE. My mind is on OE as I work with these eggs, instars, examine then sterilize milkweed, etc. I was changing a 4-5th instar's water and food, when to my horror it fell into some dilute bleach-water ! I thought it would have died instantly. I fished it out and rinsed it off well, then gave it the choicest, tenderest MW I had reserved for babies. It went wild with this fresh and young MW and ate like a pig for hours! I had an idea similar to yours, what if a hint of bleach had gotten into it's system and killed or partially killed the OE? Having been married to a chemist, I often wish I could access his knowledge and love of "challenges" and apply it to OE. After seeing the diseased Monarch in my yard, the last group of eggs I washed in a mild bleach-water solution, and marked their container as such. Former eggs I allowed to hatch on the stem as found, washed with water only. Will see how they eclose. I appreciate that you looked into OE and called about it. I am frustrated at the inconsistent information I'm finding online about bleach working, not working, etc....how much to use, how long...etc. About changing their MW type, etc. Also if these winter bred Monarchs will be confused, fit in? Will aiding unnatural behavior be of any benefit in the big picture? Hopefully a "vaccine" or a genetic tolerance for OE will evolve. The poor Monarch--global warming, rapid destruction of it's winter forest in Mexico and native habitats, GE crops, OE..This is an inspiring species...Seems adaptation is their strong suit, yet their radical decline is sobering.

PUPATION - Butterfly caterpillars generally pupate on a branch or stick, seldom on the host plant. Monarchs and other species that make hanging chrysalides will often use the underside of the lid of their container. Most will make a silk button or other structure to attach to for pupation. Once attached, they will hang inactive for a day or so and may shrink and discolor before actually pupating. Moth caterpillars make cocoons in leaves, crevices or on sticks, depending on the species. Most Sphinx moth cats will burrow underground and excavate a chamber lined with a small amount of silk. Sphinx cats will readily pupate in leaf litter or paper towels in captivity. Sphinx cats severely shrink and discolor before pupation. Don't mistake them for dead or dying caterpillars. Over-wintering cocoons and chrysalides are best kept in an unheated outdoor shelter like a garage. Another option is to store them in the crisper drawer of your refrigerator. You can mist them with water occasionally to keep them from dehydrating, but avoid too much moisture; that can cause mold. ECLOSION - When a butterfly or moth emerges from its chrysalis or cocoon, it needs to hang to properly inflate its wings. Be sure it has something it can climb up or hang onto. Most butterflies will cling to their empty chrysalis case. Try not to disturb them after eclosion. If disturbed, they may prematurely eject the fluid used to inflate the wings and be crippled for life. After the wings are inflated they need to dry and harden. This usually takes about 6 hours. A butterfly or moth may be able to fly before then, but will be unable to go far because the wings will still be too heavy or soft. Before taking flight, butterflies and moths will eject the excess fluid in their bodies (called meconium). Place paper toweling under them if they are above an area you don't want to get stained. HAND FEEDING - Usually feeding isn't necessary, but in cases of extended bad weather there may be a need to feed your unreleased butterflies. In the wild, lack of sunshine and/or cool temperatures will make butterflies inactive, reducing their need for feeding. There has been quite a bit of discussion on what sugar/water ratio is appropriate for butterflies. It has been argued that butterflies require less sugar than there is in commercial hummingbird nectar mix, but it has also been argued that hummingbirds and butterflies feed from the same nectar sources in the wild. The most common formula seems to be 1 part sugar to 4 parts water. One tablespoon of sugar mixed with four tablespoons of water is a typical batch. Gatorade has also been recommended. Soak a small sponge with the liquid or place a few drops on a tabletop. Avoid large puddles; you don't want the butterfly's wings to get wet and sticky. Hold the butterfly by the upper wing tips and unroll the feeding tube with a toothpick, placing the tip in the mix. Butterflies are surprisingly cooperative once they get a taste and will often sit and drink unrestrained until they've had their fill. BREEDING - Butterflies are very difficult to breed in captivity. Your best bet is to release them. Female silk moths can be left outside overnight in a cage to attract males. The bars should be spaced wide enough to allow mating but close enough to prevent the female from escaping. Females emit a pheromone from a scent gland at the end of the abdomen, usually the first few nights after eclosing. This scent will attract males from miles away. Females rarely fly before mating. This is why females caught at lights are usually fertilized. Always breed moths in open cages and where there is some airflow. Closed containers and aquariums concentrate the phermone released by the females making them difficult for the males to locate. Males navigate by smell and touch, not sight, so a slight breeze is essential. After mating, the female moth can be placed in a brown grocery bag for egg-laying. Since the eggs are attached to surfaces with a strong adhesive, the bag makes it much easier to cut out the eggs later. Females will continue to lay eggs until they are nearly dead. Since silk moths have no mouthparts and don't feed, there is nothing you can do to prolong their lives. Typically silk moths live only about 10 days. INBREEDING - Inbreeding is not recommended. Inbred silkmoths have been known to produce a higher percentage of unviable eggs and entire broods of inbred caterpillars have been known to die for apparently no other reason. However, if no wild males are available, inbreeding is preferable to not breeding at all. Males that emerge before females can be stored in a refrigerator to prolong their lives until females are available. The recommended temperature is 55 degrees. Colder temperatures can cause behavior changes that will render them incapable of mating.