Happy first birthday to the Texas Butterfly Ranch blog, where we love the whole life cycle. Read on to learn how we came about blogging and how our education continues.
On the conseqence of caterpillars, Dr. David L. Wagner sings their praises--food source for birds and mammals, flavor agent in our favorite foods, and essential threads in our wildscapes.
Butterfly and Caterpillar events abound this weekend in San Antonio and Austin--from bookreadings and park openings to guided caterpillars tours and a lecture by Dr. David Wagner, one of the foremost experts on caterpillars on the planet. Don't miss all the action. Read on for details.
Monarch Watch released its State of the Monarch Population report last week and the news was not good. Texas gardeners can help by planting more milkweed.
Austin Butterfly Forum members shared tips on how to raise caterpillars and nurture them into butterflies at an informative session at Zilker Gardens recently.
Ever wonder about the best way to raise caterpillars [...]
Tips from the Llano River on how to find Monarch butterfly eggs and caterpillars plus a tour of the Texas Hill Country attest to the enduring resilience of native milkweed plants.
Native plant sales and how to raise a caterpillar workshops among butterfly events slated for April in Central and South Texas.
According to Monarch Watch, the citizen scientist program that monitors the Monarch butterfly migration and started the tagging program, monarch caterpillars consume 200x their birthweight in milkweed leaves in about a two-week period. Commercial butterfly breeders suggest that a single caterpillar can easily decimate an entire one-gallon milkweed plant--175 leaves per caterpillar. Of course, it depends on the milkweed you supply. Our native Texas milkweed, Antelope Horns, Asclepias asperula, is much heftier than the Tropical Milkweed, Asclepias curassavica, found in nuseries right now--like a beef steak compared to lettuce. Yet, when the Monarchs are flying, any milkweed is better than none. Sound impossible? Watch the video.
Happy Equinox and the start of Butterfly Season. Monarch butterflies and Eastern Swallowtails are fluttering back into our gardens. Be sure you have milkweed, fennel, parsely, dill and rue to give them something to host on.
