Monday, March 12, 2012

Meandering Monarchs

It's Spring again, and I find myself neck deep in Florida Monarchs.
There are worse problems to have, and this one I made for myself.
All year round I keep some milkweed growing in my garden to attract and help
Monarchs find a place to lay eggs.  I also try to keep some parsley or dill
growing for swallowtails.  Both are butterflies, so you might expect similar behavior?
Oh no.  Swallowtails lay their eggs, turn to caterpillars eat everything, then find the closest
thing they can find and create a chrysalis.
Monarchs on the other hand are travelers and who knows where they may go.
Lets call it Monarch hide and seek.
Some are lazy and take the closest twig, while others hit the road.
I generally try to keep some on my lanai to protect them from predators, which creates
some of the silliest chrysalis locations.

The photo collage above was created by my lovely wife on PicFrame using her i-phone
posted to her instagram page, check her out  @sottpa
 The photos below are some of our favorite meandering monarchs.
Below that is a list of links to my various butterfly videos.
Enjoy.
















Video Links

                  Monarchs caterpillar to chrysalis in HD
                  Monarchs caterpillar to chrysalis timelapse
                  Monarchs eat
                  Monarch birth
                  Swallowtail birth
                  Swallowtail feast



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Monday, March 5, 2012

Strawberry Fields Forever


What does this sea anemone looking thing have to do with strawberries?
Scroll down and see the secret life of a strawberry.




The last few months have taken me out to the never ending
 strawberry fields of Plant City Florida, the home of winter strawberries.
Red strawberries get all the attention, so take a second and enjoy
the beautiful white strawberry flower.


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