I just now let him fly away. It turned out to be a male monarch. I raised him from a 1/2" caterpillar that I found on May 15th.
He ate and ate for 10 days straight, and grew into the most beautiful caterpillar!
This is him the day before he went to sleep in his chrysalis
I didn't get a photo of him in his chrysalis because he decided to make his little sleeping bag right underneath the lid I had for his jar. But here is a photo from a monarch from last year I raised.
After sleeping for about 10 days this is what he looked like the night before emerging into a butterfly today.
Then this morning I took this shot just seconds after coming out of his chrysalis.
You can see a difference in his wings just 30 seconds later!!!
Then 6 hours later I let him go!
Isn't he the most beautiful creature!
I let him crawl out of the jar onto one of my big milkweed plants. This is where the life of the monarch begins...on the milkweed plant. The female lays her eggs underneath the leaves. This guy stayed on the leaf just long enough for me to get these great pics and then took off heading east. I hope he is doing well.
In other nature news! LOL Yesterday I was out on my backyard deck photographing my glass tile photo pendants when a deer wanders through our backyard into my neighbors yard. It stops and is eating something underneath a couple of apple trees. Don't think there are apples yet? Maybe so...Then he walks over to the next neighbors yard. I think it was eating that neighbors hostas.
Then after having a nice late lunch it sits down and rests for awhile, chewing it's cud. I just sat there and watched it for a long time. So beautiful!!!
This is my kitty Bonsai who loves to have his picture taken! Hope to have my primitive pendants listed by Sunday! Waiting on supplies to finish them.
What a beautiful post! Even the Monarch's chrysalis is pretty!
ReplyDeleteI love the visitor to your yard! Such gorgeous animals! :)
That is the best photography I have ever seen of a Monarch Butterfly.
ReplyDeleteI have always been a fan of Gene Stratton Porter and I have her Moth Book. I have always loved photos like that. Your pendants are lovely too.So is your pretty visitor.
Beautiful photos and wonderful that you could watch and shoot it at different stages.
ReplyDeleteDebbie
Such beautiful photos!!
ReplyDeleteSuch beautiful creatures!!!
ReplyDeleteMy friend every summer has an aquarium filled with with those beauties. When it's time to let them go she always gives them a name all begining with the same letter ~ then records them in a book. Love the photo of recent visitor.
Love the pendant you made of your precious pet too.
Prim Blessings
Robin
I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the evolution of this butterfly!
ReplyDeleteI thoroughly enjoyed seeing the evolution of this butterfly!
ReplyDeleteGorgeous photos! xoxo
ReplyDeleteMy mother used to go in search of monarch caterpillars every year to raise. It's quite an amazing thing to behold. Thanks for sharing the beautiful pictures.
ReplyDelete-Steph-