Why do monarch butterflies only eat milkweed

Do they crawl that far? Meanwhile, some caterpillars in the backyard they are munching away on the dill, while leaving the milkweed alone. I think it would help this discussion topic if you posted a picture of the Black Swallowtail butterfly caterpillar with the article. The markings are similar enough that some people could be mistaking the Black Swallowtail caterpillar for the Monarch caterpillar.

Without milkweed to eat the Monarch will not become poisonous to its predators,. Hi- Nice article on monarchs. To Amber: I'm guessing that those are black swallowtail butterflies eating your parsley. The caterpillars look very similar to the monarch cats. I get them on my parsley and dill every year. I wish we could post pictures here because I have several cats, in at least 4 different stages, eating almost the entire supply of parsley in my herb garden.

Thanks in advance for any feedback! Amber Gonzales, La. I've been raising Monarchs now for about 2 years and have released about Have also "tagged" butterflies and released them here in Central Florida. I make a butternut popsicle and put that on a metal skewer or just cut some into strips, julienne style. I take the largest cats and put them in a very large plastic jar Snyders Pretzels and a paper towel and then the butternut squash strips.

As they finish and start to crawl up and out of the jar, I then put them on the inside of our screen porch and they climb up and form their chrysalis!

Saved me many times! I think some people might be mistaking the black swallowtail caterpillar for the monarch caterpillar. Black swallowtails eat parsley, fennel, and dill. I have seen plenty of black swallowtails on those herbs but never a monarch. I have two parsley plants that have four or more Monarch caterpillars eating them to the quick.

I was glad to share! I came to your site because after years of collecting and sharing monarch eggs and caterpillars, and enjoying my butterfly garden, complete with milkweed, I found a full grown monarch caterpillar on my potted verbena flowers. That pot is quite a distance from any milkweed. I see in your article that they can travel a distance from their host plant to pupate.

Thank you for the info. And in response to the previous comments, I have found many caterpillars on my parsley as well, but they are Black Swallowtail butterflies. As my Dill plant is slowly being entirely consumed by ONE monarch caterpillar, I was hoping to find other things for it to munch on so I could watch it turn into a butterfly. They definitely do not "only" eat milkweed, as this is the second year for me to have caterpillars on dill plants.

Previous year there were 8! I have them eating my fennel plant 2 yeaars in a row now.. As others have commented my fennel is almost gone and I have some pretty small caterpillars.

What else can I provide for them to eat? I saw your post regarding Monarch caterpillars eating only milkweed. As I type I have five caterpillars eating my Italian parsley plant down to the base of the plant. It's pretty much eaten and I'm not sure that they are finished growing. Monarch Caterpillars on Tropical Milkweed. Submit your review. Ecosystem Gardening. Average rating:. Butterfly Gardening for Monarchs: Got Milkweed? Check this box to confirm you are human.

Submit Cancel. The seeds are dispersed by wind. When broken, the stems and leaves of most milkweeds release a milky-white sap. Milkweeds are perennials, and propagate by seed or rhizome. Milkweeds are mildly toxic and should not be consumed by humans, pets, or livestock. The easiest way of distinguishing various milkweed species is by province, the characteristics of the site where the plant is found, the width and length of the leaf, the seed pod texture, and flower colours.

When inspecting the underside of milkweed leaves for monarch eggs or chrysalises, be careful, for both are easily overlooked and easily damaged. Monarch eggs are no larger than a pinhead, and chrysalises, which dangle from a thin thread of woven silk, are leafy green coloured see below. Milkweed plants contain a toxic substance called cardenolide which, if ingested in large quantities, can cause cardiac arrest in humans, livestock, and other animals.

However, grazing animals will only eat milkweed if there is nothing else available to eat, such as when animals are overcrowded onto poorly managed pastures. Accidental poisoning of grazing livestock by milkweed is therefore rare on well managed farms.

Farmers who grow and cut hay to feed livestock must take care to ensure it does not contain large amounts of milkweed, and for this reason will use herbicides to control milkweed in their hay fields. Historically, agriculture officials in many jurisdictions classified milkweed as a noxious weed, but this is changing.

Milkweed is a very attractive plant, and monarchs will find it in your garden. Should your pets try chewing on a milkweed plant, they will find the taste disagreeable, and will usually stop eating it before they suffer any harm. The five species of milkweed tracked in Milkweed Watch are all native to Canada; select the species that is native to your province and is best suited to soil conditions on your property.

A key factor in the instability of monarch populations is a shortage of flowering plants, caused by the expansion of cities, suburbs, and agricultural fields. If you live in the city, consider replacing some of your lawn with flower gardens.

If you live in the country, allow wildflowers to grow on unused land, and avoid spraying herbicides unnecessarily. Climate change is also a concern for a number of reasons. Monarchs are very sensitive to temperature and weather changes, so climate change may affect biological processes, such as knowing when to reproduce and to migrate.

As an iconic and loved species, monarchs have received a lot of attention from conservationists. Projects exist across North America.

There are also a number of citizen scientist opportunities , where regular people can help scientists collect data, which is critical for developing conservation policies to protect monarchs. Some, however, are at risk from human development and conflict.

There are also many larger-scale efforts to protect habitat, better manage land for pollinators, replenish milkweed, raise awareness, and gather new scientific evidence to better understand monarchs.

All rights reserved. Animals Photo Ark. Monarch butterfly. Common Name: Monarch butterflies. Scientific Name: Danaus plexippus. Type: Invertebrates. Diet: Herbivore. Group Name: Flutter. Average Life Span: Six to eight months. Size: Wingspan, 3.

Weight: 0. Size relative to a teacup:. Not evaluated. Least Concern Extinct. Current Population Trend: Unknown. This photo was submitted to Your Shot, our photo community on Instagram.

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