Queen and Monarch Butterflies

Queen and Monarch Butterflies

 

Today I saw a Queen and Monarch butterflies flying around in my backyard, feeding on some dandelions.  I took some pictures from my window.  They were absolutely beautiful!

 

Monarch butterfly feeding on dandelion flower.




Queen butterfly feeding on dandelion flower.



 The Queen butterfly stuck around a little bit longer, so I got another nice picture of it:



Queen butterfly feeding on dandelion flower.

They looked so similar at first when I was taking pictures of them from my window.  However, you can see the difference in the pictures above.  The Monarch butterfly has darker, thicker, black veins on the inside and outside of its wings.  The Queen butterfly has thinner black veins only on the outside of its wings.  The Queen also has smaller white dots on the inside and outside of it's wings.  Another difference to note is that it the Queen butterfly has more of a brown color, and the Monarch butterfly has more of an orange color to the wings.

Polyphemus (Silk) Moth Caterpillars Eating Host Plant

Polyphemus (Silk) Moth Caterpillars Eating Host Plant

 

I have been raising a lot of Polyphemus (Silk) moth caterpillars this past month and they have grown fast!

 

Here are some pictures that I have taken of them at this stage:



Polyphemus (Silk) moth caterpillars preparing to shed skin.

Polyphemus (Silk) moth caterpillars feeding on host plant, Oak tree.

Polyphemus (Silk) moth caterpillars feeding on host plant, Oak tree.



You can see below how well the Polyphemus (Silk) moth caterpillars blend in with the leaves of their host plant. 



Polyphemus (Silk) moth caterpillars feeding on host plant, Oak tree.



Once these caterpillars are larger, their heads are more of a dark orange color.  They have a beautiful shiny blue stripe at its end on the side.  Their bodies are a light green color.  There are tiny silver hairs all over their body.  You can see that the caterpillars get big and fat as they grow.

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One Hundred Polyphemus (Silk) Caterpillars

One Hundred Polyphemus (Silk) Caterpillars!

 

 

I have been busy this past month feeding about one hundred caterpillars.  These are Polyphemus moth caterpillars (also called Silk moths).  I have plenty of pictures of the caterpillars.  Soon I will have many more pictures of the Polyphemus (Silk) moth!

 

Here are some pictures that I managed to take while feeding all of these caterpillars their host plant:



Polyphemus (Silk) moth caterpillar feeding on host plant, Oak tree.

 

Polyphemus (Silk) moth caterpillars looking for host plant, Oak tree.

 

This is when the Polyphemus (Silk) moth caterpillars first hatched.  There were only a few caterpillars that I was able to take a picture of.  They are so small when they first hatch!  You can only imagine how fast the food gets eaten from all of these.

 

Their eggs are white.  These caterpillars have red heads when they first hatch.  Their bodies are green with organge/yellow spikes or spines.

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This is My Caterpillar Christmas Tree (Polyphemus)

This is My Caterpillar Christmas Tree (Polyphemus)

 

This is my caterpillar Christmas tree!  The caterpillars are the ornaments.  I collect butterflies and moths.  We have a moth that laid hundreds of eggs and some of them hatched.
 



My Caterpillar Christmas Tree (Polyphemus)

 These are Polyphemus moth caterpillars eating on their host plant, a Live Oak tree.  They are also called Silk Moths.

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What Kind of Butterfly is This?

What Kind of Butterfly is This?

 

What kind of butterfly is this?




What kind of butterfly is this?

 

Hawk Moth

Hawk Moth

 

This is a picture of a hawk moth that I saw outside of my window today.

 

 I love the unique color and features that different types of hawk moths have.  All kinds of mixtures of brown are on its wings, like waves.

This one has huge eyes, and legs like a poodle!

 

I also got some pictures from underneath the hawk moth.

 

 

They are strange and beautiful.  Their wings are shaped like an arrow almost.  Hawk moths have a really large abdomen.  I enjoyed watching this moth today and taking pictures.



Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly

Today I saw a beautiful Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly flying around in my backyard.  It fed on the zenas in my backyard.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly

I love the black stripes on these butterflies.  It is amazing to watch them fly.  Eastern Tiger Swallowtail buterflies also have black stripes on their bodies like in the picture above.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly


They have such beautiful colors!