0
We have parsley in our garden that is covered in Monarch eggs and there are 7 caterpillers eating the parsley leaves, not the stems. We were so surprised, they are about a week old now and 1inch long. We live in Northern Alambaba ****************** Unless your caterpillars are eating milkweed, you have found something other than a Monarch caterpillar. Female Monarchs lay their eggs exclusively on the milkweed plant and the caterpillars eat nothing but the leaves of the milkweed plant. This is one of the reasons why Monarchs are becoming more and more endangered. The milkweed is classed as a noxious plant in many jurisdictions and sprayed. I remember as a child finding "monarch" caterpillars on the carrot leaves in the garden and being disappointed when they turned into something other than a Monarch. The butterfly we discovered was just as beautiful - the Black Swallowtail. The caterpillars you find on parsley leaves are likely those of the Black Swallowtail which feed on the leaves of the carrot family, including celery, dill and parsley. The caterpillars bear a certain resemblance to the caterpillar of the Monarch. Search "Black Swallowtail" in Wikipedia to see a picture of one, or try this link. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Swallowtail Compare that caterpillar with this image of a Monarch caterpillar at this Wikipedia site. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Monarch_Butterfly_Danaus_plexippus_Vertical_Caterpillar_2000px.jpg
What else can I help you with?
How does the viceroy butterfly not benefit from eating milkweed?
The viceroy butterfly does not eat milkweed, it is a mimic of the monarch butterfly which does eat milkweed. The milkweed makes the monarch butterfly toxic to birds. Once a bird eats its first monarch butterfly it gets so sick that it learns to never try to eat anything that looks like a monarch butterfly ever again. The viceroy butterfly has evolved to mimic the monarch butterfly to avoid being eaten by birds that have previously tried eating a monarch butterfly.
What are the enemies of the monarch butterfly?
The biggest threat to the monarch butterfly are wasps, bees, frogs, and especially people. Insects like to eat the eggs of Monarch Butterflies.
Does this combination of adaptations make every monarch butterfly safe from birds?
No. Since new birds are hatched every year, the young ones won't know that monarchs taste so bad. Also, the viceroy butterfly looks like a monarch. Birds eat it and it tastes good. So if that bird sees a monarch it thinks is a viceroy butterfly, it'll eat it.
How does a Viceroy Butterfly mimics a Monarch Butterfly?
Butterflies are harmless. No American Lepidoptera is known to be poisonous to man. I am familiar with the Monarch, Red Admiral and other types. they are harmless and beautiful insects not pesky (Bugs). The Monarch butterfly is poisonous to some animals. The poisons in their bodies is very distasteful to many predators. The viceroy and monarch were once thought to exhibit Batesian mimicry where a harmless species mimics a toxic species. Studies conducted in the early 1990's suggest that the viceroy and the monarch are actually examples of Mullerian mimicry where two equally toxic species mimic each other to the benefit of each. Just goes to show you there's always something new to discover in the natural world!
What butterflies are yellow and look like a monarch?
The Viceroy Butterfly looks almost identical to the monarch butterfly, and that makes the viceroy a mimic. Birds know that monarchs are not good to eat, so the viceroy avoids being eaten by looking like the monarch. The queen butterfly, the painted lady and others are sometimes mistaken for monarch butterflies.
What does a larva of Monarch Butterfly eat?
leaves and twigs to get fat and into a cacoon
Do butterfly larva eat leaves?
Yes, because butterfly larva are caterpillers!!;)
The second stage of the butterfly life cycle?
Monarch butterflies go through a four stage development cycle in their lifespans. The four stages of the monarch butterfly are the egg, the caterpillar or larvae, the chrysalis or pupa, and the butterfly.
Do monarch butterfly caterpillars eat dill weed?
They are feeding on dill weed in my garden right now. They have also fed on parsley from my garden.
How do you use the word larva in a sentence?
I love to watch butterfly larva eat leaves
Do Koreans eat butterfly larva?
Yes some do.
How does Monarch Butterfly eat?
corn
What butterfly is also called the milkweed butterfly?
The monarch butterfly? They eat milkweed.
Do monarch butterfly eat their shells?
Probably! :) :(
How does the viceroy butterfly not benefit from eating milkweed?
The viceroy butterfly does not eat milkweed, it is a mimic of the monarch butterfly which does eat milkweed. The milkweed makes the monarch butterfly toxic to birds. Once a bird eats its first monarch butterfly it gets so sick that it learns to never try to eat anything that looks like a monarch butterfly ever again. The viceroy butterfly has evolved to mimic the monarch butterfly to avoid being eaten by birds that have previously tried eating a monarch butterfly.
Can a butterfly poison a human?
According to an Internet search, there is no butterfly that is so poisonous that it would kill a human. There are butterflies that are extremely distasteful to birds and other such predators due to the larva's consumption of poisonous plants. The Monarch butterfly is a well-known example of that. The larva eat milkweed.
Can monarch butterfly eat their own species?
yes
