We just started planting Milkweed (bought at a local nursery) in pots just a month ago. We were debating whether to bring the caterpillars inside and we decided against it. The reasoning was that if we plant enough Milkweed (already purchased a raised bed garden kit), the nature will take its share ( geckos and wasps here in Houston) and the rest will survive. We'll see how that works out.

Interesting article, but other than the difference in top wings, was there any other explanation of why the hand raised ones didn't migrate?

Years ago my younger son decided to raise Bob White quail. He ordered eggs by

mail and in the first batch only one hatched. "Quinton" eventually started laying eggs

but we soon learned that he/she did not know how to sit on and try hatch the eggs.

We got Quinton several male partners, who promptly figured out how to fly the coop and escape the large, comfy aviary.

After numerous attempts at raising a family, we surmised Q just didn't know how to brood the eggs since he/she wasn't brooded but instead was incubated under a light bulb. No parent there to teach Q how to sit on eggs til hatching. It wasn't instinctive.

Maybe the butterflies are similar and we, humans, are missing the clue.

In nature plants often grow closely together and interplanted which of course makes caterpillars much harder to spot within all the mixed vegetation. In our gardens however we often keep different plants separate and everything evenly spaced and neat which to me seems would make caterpillars way easier to spot by prey. I mean if you can easily spot the caterpillars yourselves so can prey.

Also wanted to mention that even before Quinton hatched in the light bulb incubatore, my son would get close to egg and 'peep' and little Q inside would peep back, so the little quail was cognizant of what was going on outside the egg. Maybe

in nature baby quail learned it's mother sat on it and also peeped but light bulbs

don't teach quail how to brood their eggs.

mr1010, I had the same thing happen with my cockatiels. I had one mother who was just letting her babies starve. It was my first clutch of babies, so I didn't recognize what was going on until one baby died. I had to hand-raise the rest of them. Every time she laid eggs, I had to put them into the other female's nest because she somehow just didn't have that nurturing gene.

Since butterflies don't nurture their young, I truly believe it has to be something genetic or chemical they pass on that makes them migrate. If the parents have never migrated, they aren't going to pass that on to their offspring.

Andy 49, The dilemma was have here is that there are native Florida monarchs, but we don't know which is laying on our plants. I agree to just let nature take its course. I lose more than I have hatch, but other critters have to survive too. I love my lizards and even my wasps, so if I have to sacrifice a few monarchs, so be it.

I take this study with a grain of salt. It sounds like it consists of Monarchs raised by only one commercial breeder over successive generations.

Each year I collect eggs or caterpillars from my gardens. There are patches of milkweeds all around the yard to attract Monarchs and it works! The females lay many more eggs than I can collect and raise which usually ends up being hundreds.

When I release the adults, most of them don't hang around here in this yard. A few individuals may hang around, but the rest migrate somewhere.

In September, when nights start to get cold (metrowest Boston.), the freshly-eclosed adults that I release are OUTTA HERE as fast as their little wings can flap, conditions permitting. I'm not sure where they go, but imagine they might migrate towards the coast or to a more southerly zone in the US where it's warmer and possibly breed another generation.