#pond 2018

[javanne]

September

The amaryllis bulbs are swelling

The sweet autumn clematis blooms along with the tall pink canna - lazy thing; the dwarf orange canna hasn’t stopped blooming since last February.

[javanne]

Second lotus flower

...and time to run inside

[javanne]

Last Monarch Released

6/26/2018 one female.

Running total of Monarch butterflies released: 13 females, 15 males, 28 total

which is really great since the total for all of last summer was 24. The first butterflies from this batch are starting to lay eggs on the milkweeds. Soon we begin again.

Meanwhile, back in the tadpole pot, lookie here  -

Three toadlings!

Still not quite done with resorbing his tail.

[javanne]

6/25/2018 Two males, leaving one pupa to mature.

Running total of Monarch butterflies released: 12 females, 15 males, 27 total

Today I found the first little toad in the tadpole pot. He would fit easily onto my littlest fingernail. Another couple of days and he will be off to seek his fortune in the wide world.

And a weird bug with tailfeathers.

[javanne]

Monarch releases

6/24/2018 3 males, 1 female

Running total: 12 females, 13 males, 25 total.

[javanne]

Leucistic Monarch?

Later in the afternoon, four more pupae hatch.  Looks like the genetic code for “orange“ was somewhat, but not totally, supressed in this lady

6/23/2018 9 females, 5 males

Running total: 11 females, 10 males, 21 total.

[javanne]

Monarch emergence

6/23/2018 7 females, 3 males

Running total: 9 females, 8 males, 17 total.

[javanne]

Monarch Caterpillars 2018

6/5/18 They are growing so big we had to add a third container today.

chomp chomp chomp chomp chomp chomp  chomp chomp chomp chomp

om nom nom nom nom nom nom nom nom nom nom nom nom nom

Last year Robin raised 24 butterflies total. This year we have 26 caterpillars in the first hatch. I think the campaign to plant milkweeds is helping.

Here are the types of milkweeds which do best near Chicago:

The common milkweed, Asclepias syriaca, tall, vigorous, and hardy, likes full sun, can tolerate dryness and poor soil; pink flowers smell like spice cake. It’s invasive and can force its way up through asphalt, so be careful where you plant it.

Swamp milkweed, Asclepias incarnata, shade-tolerant, hardy and less invasive, prefers not to dry out, smaller than syriaca, with narrow leaves. Pink flowers that smell like sugar or white flowers that smell like chocolate. Our Monarchs seem to prefer these to syriaca.

Scarlet or Mexican Milkweed, Asclepias curassavica, similar in form and habit to incarnata but with red and yellow flowers. Not hardy here, which is actually an advantage as it prevents the hosting of parasite Ophryocystis elektroscirrha. Seeds collected in the fall can be sown in spring.

This year as an experiment we have planted Asclepias hirtella, Asclepias sullivantii, Asclepias exaltata,  Asclepias verticillata,  and Asclepias tuberosa (butterfly weed). We will report on their progress.