I was in the middle of lunch today when I noticed a gray hairstreak on the Sphaeralcea ambigua buds. I know it must have been laying eggs, but I couldn't find any. I brought the plant home, hoping for more obvious caterpillars later. I know the pics are lousy, but the mallow flowers are pretty!

My butterfly emerged today. September 4, 2009. This is the same one that pupated on Aug 25. I'm guessing that it is a field crescent, but I really don't know.
Compare here: http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species?l=1744
Isn't that flower pretty? I got the plant for free, it was in such bad shape, then I put it on the front porch and ignored it, except for occasional water. Then to my surprise, it bloomed! It is Reineckea carnea in the Lily family. I think it is a great plant, since it is taking care of itself. Maybe I should try putting it in the ground, although it is doing so well in the pot, I would rather not disturb it. Apparently the snails love it, so maybe I will try it as a house plant.
Just a reminder: this animal fed on aster as a youngster, and it was born and raised in Berkeley, California. I plan to release it tomorrow.

Asters

A friend found this caterpillar on asters, and I decided to bring it home to raise it. I thought maybe it was a crescent, but crescents are supposed to overwinter as caterpillars, and I just don't see how this caterpillar could be that old, since the asters were planted from seed last winter. I guess I could just wait to see what butterfly emerges, but now I think it may overwinter as a chrysalis, and I just don't want to wait until next spring. So, can anybody identify it from my mediocre photos? The chrysalis is about 1/2" and pupated today, 25 Aug 2009.

Garden Fair

Andy and I went to Strybing in San Francisco for the Garden Fair. We didn't take any plants to sell this time, so it we had less to schlep and it was easier. Andy outdid himself with the displays, and people were so impressed! More people this year, perhaps people are going to garden fairs instead of doing a garden tour in Europe because of the economy. The kenilworth ivy with white flowers growing in the garden walls was enchanting. Usually it has lavender flowers, which I like, but I also like the white. It is the larval host plant for buckeye butterflies. It love cracks in steps and walls and perfers a shady spot with moisture. It is sometimes available at nurseries, but why buy it when you can "borrow" some from a neighbor! Do ask before digging. ;-)

Here is a student working on one of my butterfly paper crafts. I hear that they kids really enjoy them and learn about butterflies and butterfly flight using them. I usually recommend that the students compare the flight of the papercraft to the flight of a real butterfly. It gets the kids outdoors looking for and really watching butterflies. Different butterflies have different flight patterns, also, so it gets them thinking about that if they see more than one species. It is a great learning tool, but of course, I am a bit biased.

Habitat

Two of my neighbors are redoing their parking strips. Or at least, they removed all the plants that were there. In both cases, they removed butterfly habitat, although I am sure they didn't realize it. The strip with the stepping stones had a beautiful patch of milkweed. I had never seen Monarchs in it, but still, I enjoyed the foliage and flowers and it gave me a chance to dream about the butterfly possibilities. The other dirt patch used to have a very healthly stand of plantain. I even saw a buckeye laying eggs. I had visions of caterpillars in September. Now, they are gone and I am sad.

Spider

These cabbage white butterflies were caught in a spider web. What a smart spider, building a web near the nasturtiums, where cabbage whites spend the day! I debated about leaving the butterflies for the crafty spider. After all, she had put a lot of work into the web and deserved her catch. But I felt more sorry for the butterflies than the spider, so I released them, all the while feeling guilty for messing with nature. Oh well........