No, you didn't have to pick them up. It was best to find a butterfly that was resting rather than one constanting flying around but all you had to do was to gently place the q-tip by the front legs, wait a second then start very slowly rolling the q-tip toward the butterfly (your hand isn't moving just the q-tip betweeen your fingers). They kinda step onto the q-tip and since they smell with their feet, they get the scent of the Gatorade and their proboscis comes out and they start to drink. One thing I noticed was that they didn't sit straight up, they kinda leaned to the side to drink. Anyway, it worked for us, everyone in the group got the butterflies to drink. I had a ZLW and a Julia get on mine (not at the same time). One thing the woman said and I have heard it and read it in other places is that the proboscis is like like a straw but when the butterfly first emerges it is actually like a straw that is not sealed. The butterfly rubs it with its feet and over time, it seals . That is why the butterflies do not have to feed for the first few hours, actually not until the proboscis is sealed. So if you raise them indoors and the weather isn't nice enough to release them, you don't have to worry so much asbout feeding them.

I guess BSTs must have various kinds of parasites/parasitoids. The very first year that I raised them (before I got into a routine of bringing them inside as aoon as I saw any BSTs on the plants) I had 4 that had been parasitized. They overwintered and came out the next spring as wasps. They weren't small like the ones in your picture but big like regular wasps and parts of them were reddish brown (I think their legs and maybe something else). I have pictures of them somewhere if only I could find them. I haven't had any problems the past few years with wasps parasitizing BSTs, but I'm vigilant about bringing them in as soon as possible to protect them. Btw, those are very nice pictures even if the subject is one that I don't like. ;-) Cathy

The monarch chrysalis normally goes through a dark phase prior to the butterfly emerging. If it seems like it is taking too long or there is a foul odor, continue reading, otherwise skip to the normal dark phase section of this FAQ. Photos of the black death syndrome are at the bottom. Causes and Prevention of Monarch "Black Death" Caterpillar: Pseudomonas Bacteria Chrysalis: Nuclear Polyhedrosis Virus Text and Photos by Forum Member tdogmom The interesting thing is this: The main way to help prevent either disease is to keep the rearing containers DRY. Warm, moist environments promote the growth and spread of the bacterial and viral 'predators' and cause unclean conditions. People can spread these diseases to caterpillars through contact with their hands. The bacteria are usually not spread person-to-person, ALTHOUGH Pseudomonas bacteria CAN be a problem particularly if it infects the human eye; it can ulcerate the cornea and lead to blindness. (NOTE: There are LOADS of different types of Pseudomonas bacteriait is one of the bacteria that causes "swimmer's ear" aka otitis and is commonly the bacteria found in hot tubs.) One way to notice if a caterpillar (aka "cat") has been infected by the Nuclear Polyhedrosis Virus (NPV) is if the caterpillar has the following symptoms: Runny, wet, or moist frass (poop), regurgitating goo, shriveling filaments at either end, sluggishness, and discolouration of the skin. These "cats" should be removed from the other cats and destroyed since the virus is deadly. Period. It is spread from one caterpillar to another through the excretions (the runny frass or regurgitations) the infected cat has left on leaves that are then eaten by another cat. How to destroy the NPV? Wash and dry the leaves the cats are fed. Ultra-violet light has also been found to destroy the virus so it can be used to "disinfect" habitats and rearing containers. A bleach solution also works. Pseudomonas bacteria is found in warm, moist areas and is common in the soil and on plants. This is why it is CRITICAL to keep all rearing containers dry. Since it is found on plants, it is practically impossible to really eliminate this particular bacteria. One thing I do is wipe the leaves I feed to my Monarch cats with those anti-bacterial Kleenex-brand tissues. Does this help? I don't know. :P Normal dark phase information follows: Posted by jrcagle: I almost threw out a monarch chrysalis that had turned black and stayed that way for 36 hours without ever turning clear to reveal the monarch inside. Then it hatched into a healthy female. Are there any diagnostics on the pupae that can help distinguish the sick from the healthy? Or perhaps, is there a suggested time frame for observation? Posted by msrpaul: Was it firm or soft? I presume firm. I have always let them go for a few days...and if soft I really check them hard. Posted by tdogmom: Usually, when the Monarch chrysalis turns 'black' you can sort of see the wings of the butterfly inside if the pupae is indeed ready to eclose into an imago. At roughly day 30 (the day the egg was laid) you may see a bit of colouration through the chrysalis. At roughly day 31 the chrysalis begins to get dark (dark colouration from wings & body). At this point, every hour, the colouring becomes darker so that within 48 hours an adult butterfly ecloses. The distinguishing feature is whether or not you see any orange and whether or not there is an odour. If you smell anything, then chances are you have a diseased pupa. Healthy pupae have no odour to them. Posted by susanlynne48: I had a couple that were several hours late eclosing after they began to darken. At first I could see the color of the wings, but then they turned so dark I couldn't detect anything within the chrysalid at all. I so thought it was horrible black death, but I remembered that everyone said to just be patient. I was, and indeed they emerged just fine, without any problems, or any sign of infection or disease. Other forum members have told me that often weather factors will delay emergence, such as if you've been in a rainy pattern. Image by: tdogmom 2005 Examples of black death

Thanks Ragna, I appreciate the input. For now I ended up eating them whole/intact. I tried pressing the pulp/juice vesicles but the yield was negligible. (Like trying to squeeze juice out of a single pomegranate bit that's mostly seed and skin and gelatinous fiber.) I baked some at 350 for a short time but that didn't help much. I think the ultimate would be in a slow cooker or crockpot for 12+ hours, to where they are softened enough to "pop" or burst in the mouth with only gentle pressure. But the temperature is low enough so there's no carmelization or dehydration or other added flavor artifacts. I suppose another motivation is that the birds eat most of the edibles I grow (tomatoes, strawberries, blackberries, grapes). This is the only edible they haven't beat me to (as of this morning anyway). So even if I only get a couple dozen "pods" that produce 1/4 cup of pulp the entire month, by golly I'm not passing it up. For a while in the 1990s there was a passionfruit flavored frozen lemonade concentrate made by Minute Maid or someone that really hit the spot for me. They no longer sell it and I haven't been able to recreate it but that sparked my initial interest in the passion fruit plant. Now that I'm growing one I also appreciate the GF butterfly connection and the visual complexity of the flower (so many features, absolutely ridiculous, in a good way of course).