Gulf fritillary cats dying

13 years ago

The Gulf fritillary caterpillars on our biggest passionflower vine are dying. Melting even. Oozing, dripping, blackening. I have no clue what's going on. Last year, I know we had several caterpillars on this same vine that went into a chrysalis. I blogged about them. But this year, I don't know if we've had even ONE chrysalis yet. Tons of caterpillars but no chrysalises. I don't remember see the larva die like this last summer. Help? I've got photos of three victims on my blog.

Here is a link that might be useful: Window on a Texas Wildscape

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Comments (9)

MissSherry
13 years ago
So sorry! :(
It looks like what I call the "black death" - it's a virus, more common in monarchs than gulf frits.
It's not your fault, and there's nothing to do about it. Fortunately, it's not likely to happen again - it's only happened to mine once.
Sherry
Sherylsr
Original Author
13 years ago
How does it spread? I wondered if our passionflower was doing it.
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You're right about that, Susan! She laid one egg on a tendril of p. mucronata and another one on the tendril of p. umbilicata, two passis I still have in pots. I'm not sure they're even safe for gulf frits, so I brought the eggs in to raise right from the start. I found all my other eggs on my new p. 'Amethyst' also known as 'Lavender Lady'. I couldn't find a single egg on any p. incarnata, very unusual - maybe she herself ate 'Amethyst' as a cat? She came back and laid some more eggs after I posted, so she's left me quite a few! :) Sherry
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Susan, I found the cat on a cloudy day, so it occurred to me that maybe it stayed hidden when the sun was out - the passionvines it was on are real thick, and it could have easily hidden there. I brought it in to raise myself in one of the cages on my covered and always shady porch, so there was no sunlight there. I've put it in sunlight to make its picture a few times, but it was late in the afternoon, and I didn't keep it out for long, so I really don't know if it's light sensitive, but I suspect it is. It's been eating a lot today, so it'll probably molt one more time, them pupate. Of course, gulf frits don't stay in their chrysalis very long, so it shouldn't be too long before I get a butterfly. I'll post another picture of it, if it changes after the next molt. Sherry
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Thanks. The accumulation shown in the photos is tell-tale ZLW. GFs have a dispersal practice of egg-laying. Although a GF egg randomly might be on a plant tip leaf, there would be no accumulation. GF typical practice is to lay elsewhere on the plant, including on dead tendrils; occasionally they even lay on something adjacent to a plant. ZLWs lay exclusively on plant tip leaves (only tender) and on tip tendrils that are tender and are free (not gripping anything). When GF caterpillars are on plant tip leaves, it is because they crawled there.
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tdogmom
13 years ago
Nah...more than likely a viral thing OR have you or your neighbors sprayed any pesticides or insecticides around lately? West Nile stuff, from the Vector Control, perhaps? How about fertilizer? Sometimes, when you fertilize your plants, a similar thing happens with the larvae. What's the temperature been like? Hot? Cold? Variable temps from morning to night? Day to day? There are a number of variables that could be causing this as well.

See if you can stop and think about what MAY be different right now. This may be difficult to do, yet, may hold the key to your problem.

In the meantime, chin up! This happens to ALL of us at one time or another. Don't give up. Things will turn around.

CalSherry aka tdogmom
Sherylsr
Original Author
13 years ago
I can't even bear to go look at my frillitary cats any more. I picked off three little ones, put them in a bug box with a few passionflower leaves, and watched them blacken/die too. So it's bacteria then? We don't use fertilizers (except for occasional Miracle Grow in the little garden) or pesticides. (Did I put some Miracle Grow at the base of the passionflower? Can't remember now.) Yes, it's been in the 90s here and sunshine hits the passionvine but not all of it.

I've thought of cutting back the passionflower because it's so ravaged and horrible looking. Everyone's dying that's hatched on it!

Sniff.
MissSherry
13 years ago
'So sorry, sherylsr!
If the virus can live on leaves or stems, then cutting it back would really be a good idea - 'don't know if it can, though. If it were me, I'd cut it all back just in case the virus can live outside the host.
Sherry
mgar581
11 years ago
My cats are dying also! It is not a virus because I'm not keeping them on the passion vine. I keep the eggs I've collected, from the passion vine, in a butterfly enclosure. Could it be that the enclosure is too hot for them? Is there perhaps a virus in the enclosure where the first three died, still in there. Should I clean the enclosure? If so, what should I clean it with?
MissSherry
11 years ago
You should ALWAYS keep your enclosures clean. I remove my cages once or twice a season and put them - mesh and frame pieces - in the tub in hot water with about ?5% bleach added. It doesn't take much bleach to kill any virus. I rinse them several times, then put the mesh and frame in a place where they can dry. In addition, you should be removing paper towels with frass on them regularly (though not obsessively, like I used to do) and don't overcrowd your caterpillars. I've been raising gulf frits for years with no problems, so I think my methods must work. There are some tiny caterpillars on the vines outside, that I'll be raising in a few days.

Sherry
bethpierce77
10 years ago
Misssherry: Would you mind sharing your method of raising Gulf Frits? I found one on my passionvine today, and would like to try to raise him in a mesh cage. Thanks... Beth
Sherylsr
Original Author
10 years ago
Hi Beth: I haven't raised Gulf frits in captivity. Sorry I can't offer any advice. Other than keep passionflower leaves with the caterpillar until it goes into its chrysalis.