Hi Scottrell! As long as the temps are above 55 degrees and it is sunny outside, the butterflies should be able to fend for themselves. They do like to find places to get out of the weather, a woodpile for when it is raining, not sure what they do when it is too cold, but I have seen them out in the yard the morning after a cold night, once the temps rise above 55. As to keeping it inside: as long as there is room for the butterfly to fly around without damaging its wings, I don't know why it wouldn't be okay to keep it inside until it warms up. Good luck! Mechelle

Where a species of butterfly chooses to stay is really an interesting point. If you walk down my street on a summer morning and look from the front yard of my house to the back yard, you will probably see at least 5 species and multiplies of these species at any given time. Look to the yard to the left or right or behind you and you might see a stray butterfly, usually headed towards my yard. Another point - a neighbor about 3 houses away also has a butterfly garden of sorts. He has a huge Pipevine growing against his house. My Pipevine grows on a wooden fence the depth of my yard. It was recently totally eaten down in a matter of a week. I took at least 60 cats to his house to put on his vine that had a couple cats on it. I gave another friend about the same amount of cats for her vine and I still had cats crawling on the ground making their chrysalis because even the stems of the vine were eaten. Now, why do the Polys stay in my yard and continue to try to find vine to lay on when just that short distance there is ample food? He doesn't spray pesticides, basically has the same predators I would like Cardinals, wasps, and anoles. I am now having to remove eggs and tiny cats that hatch just to let my vine regrow. There were at least 20 Polys out there this morning chasing each other and trying to find vine to lay on. My point is you can't make them come or make them stay or make them go away (well unless you get rid of their hosts!). We are also seeing a change in the migration path for our state butterfly Zebra Longwing. I have yet to see one come in my yard this year despite having several types of Passionvine that they use. In past years I was releasing up to 2 dozen a day for several weeks in the summer. The past winter was so bad that some believe the butterflies suffered since they do have a long lifetime since they also collect pollen as well as nectar. They are still seeing them in south Florida and along the coast but not in the interior as in the past. When I was raising and releasing them, I never saw many stay in my yard. Most would leave and only 2 to 3 pairs would stay. My theory was that the others would continue north since they are common (or were) common throughout the state. I would love to have some to raise and get them re-established in the area but I bet they wouldn't stay but move on. I actually did get a few eggs from a friend in South Florida and released 5 but all left immediately. Again, you can't make them stay. Its in their genetic makeup to do what nature wants them to do.

Gaby, Your BFs will be OK. You didn't do the wrong thing. Enjoy raising them and releasing them. They'll make it at least to my neck of the woods! I can't remember when the big migration starts but here's a link to the Monarch Watch site which will allow you to track migration. Sandy Here is a link that might be useful: Fall Migration

I agree with asolo's comments that guaranteed temperatures are a good thing to have even if the temperature setting iof the cycles is somewhat low. That one the main reason for me to get the Bosch washer. I am aware of the actual temperatures of the cycles and that the warm cycle is just 90 degrees (rather cold), but I can adjust the cycle selection accordingly. The sanitary cycle offers 170 degrees (for three minutes, then 150), the kids cycle reaches 150 F and the hot cycle 120. It would be nice to have a few more options, but I can definitely find an appropriate cycle for all my clothes, bedding and towels. jerrod6, the European FLs sold in Europe (220 V, 5-7 kg capacity) coldest cycle is a 30 degree Celsius wash, except for maybe the delicate cycles. So all those washers should heat the water to approx. 90 F which is still below body temperature so the vast majority of clothes won't get any damage... I am not sure if the smaller European washers offered in the US are exactly the same, I guess you'd have to check the specific manuals or call the manufacturer. To the OP, yes, I do think that tap cold water is too cold to get anything clean. It might work on clothes that are very slightly soiled or smelly, but for dog bedding or dish rags I'd always choose a much higher temperature. In our old TL we used the "hot" cotton cycle and the dish rags would still be smelly. The enzymes of the detergents are not active at temperatures below approx. 90 F and no bacteria or fungi get effectively killed at anything below ~140 F. Rinsing your dish rags in the kitchen sink with hot water will most likely get them cleaner than washing them at tap cold temperatures in a washing machine. One thing you can do to kill the germs in dish rags if you really can't or don't want to do hot washes is to put the wet dish rags in the microwave for a minute. Afterwards you can wash them and they should be fairly clean.