I planted milk weed to have some monarch butterflies and I did get lots of larva they were doing ok severa?

Question

different sizes. I went out yesterday to check on them and they were all gone and I know they were not all ready to spin the cocoon. what could have happened to them.I know the milkweed is poisoness to birds and will make pets ill if they eat the larva.this is my first year for this experience. anyone who is experienced in this please give me some answers. should I have harvested them in a container full of milkweed for them to feed on ? they were just in the open in my garden with all the butterfly bushes and other plants

Answer 1

Milk weed is not native to your area you screwed the Mother Gia up BAD

Answer 2

No my friend, don't harvest them! I understand completely, mine disappear then reappear, I have no idea where they go. But I have lots of other butterfly and hummingbird friendly plants and I know they might hide out, especially when it's so hot outside (South Florida). Have you noticed any Yellow Jackets (wasps) around? They will sting them and kill them, I have two wasp traps coming that I ordered, I have watched this happen over and over and there's no choice but to kill the wasps. There are also a couple of pests that can kill them, check for other bugs on your milkweeds. I have shield bugs and milkweed bugs, the milkweed bugs are harmless but I'm not sure if my shield bugs are actually stink bugs, which will kill the caterpillars too. If you need anymore info feel free to e-mail me, I've been at this for a while and I can empathize with your frustration. Good luck! (Oh, don't worry, most animals like birds and such know that the caterpillars are poisonous, they won't eat them!)

Answer 3

I raise Monarch Butterflies and I have actually seen the Cardinals in my yard eat the Monarch caterpillars on my Swamp Milkweed.   I know that the Milkweed is suppose to make them taste bad and make the birds sick, but that evidently doesn't matter to the Cardinals, because they were feasting on them.

I would suggest that if you would like to raise Monarch Butterflies, you bring either the egg (if you find them underneath the leaf) or the caterpillar inside.  Monarch butterflies lay many eggs and very few make it through the cycle outside.  

The caterpillars do leave the Milkweed when it is time for them to become a chrysalis, but since you said the caterpillars were all different sizes, they probably all wouldn't have been ready for this.

Check out link for instructions on raising Monarchs.

Answer 4

I believe that you may have underestimated the cycle time for your butterflies.  It is August and in most cases monarch butterflies will be entering the Chrysalis stage by now.  How long had your larva been out?  It's usually only two weeks between when they hatch and when they go to pupa.  I would do a check around the milkweeds and surrounding plants.  look under leaves and on stems. Larva will sometimes crawl away to look for more solid place to make a Chrysalis.

Check out this site for extra info.

http://www.monarchbutterflyusa.com/Cycle...

Answer 5

Yes you should. Use a BIG tank of milkweed, but not full of milk weed. Leave it next to a window and make it as much like a field of milk weed as possible. I believe that if you have any pets, don't put them anywhere near this tank. Check up on them every few days. That's about all.

Answer 6

That sounds very odd.  Don't harvest them until you discuss this with someone more experienced in your area.

Contact the organization below.  They'll help put you in touch with a local chapter near you.

Good luck.  I've had milkweed for several years now and no monarchs.