Cathy, My yard is barren pretty much. LoL I have a couple lantana planted. I had to do a total burn down of the lawn. It was over ran by broadleaf, invasive thistles, bindweed and gods above knows what else. We were gone for almost a year. When we moved in here it was pretty bad to begin with. (A foreclosure property.) Anyway...Starting over completely! I just wanted desperately to try and snap a picture or three...Ah well! Next year! :) I'll have things coming up! I have dill, fennel, lantana, tropical milkweed just to name a couple of things. I'm going to try my hardest to draw them to me instead of me following them! I surely felt silly wandering around 1/4th of an acre trying to catch an image of them. I'm sure you all can picture that! *g* yeah, yeah... laugh along with me, because I am giggling about it. I know how silly it had to have looked! Anyway, for now...I'll just keep oogling everyone elses photos! ~Tina Marie

I'm enjoying a bounty of fritillaries too, courtesy of my neighbor's passion vine which the cats are devouring. Never knew there was a variegated one. Googled them both so I could see the differences. Now I'm going to be on the lookout for a variegated. Thanks for the info. The picture may have a slight blur but, hey, you got it! Kudos.

Brad a couple years ago on a camping trip in the Boreal forest I saw a Luna moth caterpillar. That caterpillar was incredible because it was very bright green and translucent so it looked like it was glowing from within. My friends had seen an adult moth resting on their then on a previous trip. I am still hoping to see an Atlas moth but they seem to be quite rare as well. A monarch from a few years ago just after unfurling it's wings out in the garden. One thing to remember if you want to see more butterflies and moths is to make sure that there are larval host plants as well as nectar plants for the adults. I think everyone should have an Asclepiad tuberosa or another native milkweed species in their garden but other plants like Aristolochia, Dill and Fennel are important larval host plants. When we did the landscaping at my sisters new house I made sure to select as many butterfly nectar plants as possible plus a few host plants. The only time I have seen a hawk moth was when I had a big collection of Datura and Brugmansia plants and a moth would come visit them when the fragrance started come nightfall. Mike

The best vine to attract both pipevine and polydamas (gold-rim) butterflies in my experience is the Aristolochia Tomentosa also called "Wolly Pipevine." You will most likely need to go online to find some. Stay away from vines that have red flowers. Most are poisonous to caterpillars of many butterflies. Unfortunately, the two best host plants for Tiger Swallowtails where I live are both trees--the Sweet Bay Magnolia and the wild Black Cherry tree. I have grown both and have seen caterpillars on the Magnolia. I had a big Black Cherry tree but for some reason it died. I just had it cut down. The Sweet Bay Magnolias are native here in Florida. One tends to find them near the water in swampy areas. Black Cherry trees come up in different environments, but also seem to do best near water.