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Monarch

Danaus plexippus

Description:

Large orange and black butterfly with a powerful flight, often sailing with wings open held in "V". The male has a black scent patch on a HW vein, topwing. Host plant: Milkweeds (Asclepias)

Habitat:

Open fields, roadsides, suburban areas. While migrating it can be anywhere.

Notes:

The Monarch female lays a single ova (egg) at a time, on asclepias, or milkweed. Three to four days later the egg hatches. Immediately after hatching the larva eats his own egg shell for his first meal. He'll then go on to eat the milkweed, stopping to molt 4 times. With each instar he grows bigger. At 5th instar he will molt one last time to form his chrysalis (larval stage is about 10-14 days). The final image is 3 different instars. The center larva had just molted and you can see his old skin behind him.

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11 Comments

DianePlatcoBrooks
DianePlatcoBrooks 11 years ago

Thank you Mayra

MayraSpringmann
MayraSpringmann 11 years ago

GREAT SERIES!!!

DianePlatcoBrooks
DianePlatcoBrooks 11 years ago

Thank you Sarah and pamsai.

pamsai
pamsai 11 years ago

Amazing series...

SarahWhitt
SarahWhitt 11 years ago

This is an amazing capture!
#4 is my fav.....touching that leaf for the first time....

DianePlatcoBrooks
DianePlatcoBrooks 11 years ago

Thank you J and auntnance.
Actually I have more to show of this life cycle......the hanging "J", the chrysalis and the eclosing of the monarch. I'll try to post soon.

auntnance123
auntnance123 11 years ago

Love photo #5. Super job, Diane.

Jacob Gorneau
Jacob Gorneau 11 years ago

Stellar series!

Sukaina
Sukaina 11 years ago

wonderful! You show us the life cycle of the Monarch and "the larva eats his own egg shell for his first meal" is a great fact to know..
thank you a lot for share this amazing series with us.

DianePlatcoBrooks
DianePlatcoBrooks 11 years ago

Thank you Yuko. I moved pic #4 to the #1 spot so you can see it better. It's my favorite too.

YukoChartraw
YukoChartraw 11 years ago

Amazing series!!! What a lovely moment you captured! Love the pic #4 in which he is poking his tiny head out. So cute!

DianePlatcoBrooks
Spotted by
DianePlatcoBrooks

Corning, Ohio, USA

Spotted on Aug 6, 2003
Submitted on Dec 20, 2012

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