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Coastal Discovery Museum’s Butterfly Habitat Plants
Last summer we went to Coastal Discovery Museum on Hilton Head Island. The entire visit was great, but my favorite part was the butterfly habitat. I photo-documented every plant whose name was unfamiliar to me (or rather nearly all the plant tags) so that I could look them up later and determine if they could be added to my own yard. Hilton Head is Hardiness Zone 8b, and Raleigh is 7b, which means that some plants may be hardy in Hilton Head but not in my yard. Many of the plants in the habitat were right over that line between 7 and 8, so they might work better as annuals.…
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Eastern Tiger Swallowtail on Cosmos
Yes, there are more butterflies on the Cosmos. These flowers have been the most attractive to flying insects of any flowers I have grown. Even humming birds have been visiting, although they seem to prefer the Black and Blue Salvia over all others in our yard. I’ve been using this website to make identifications. This one is an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail. The other day I thought I spotted a Monarch and a Luna Moth, but I wasn’t able to photograph either because they were up in the trees and quickly floated away before I could grab the camera. For those who are curious, I’m shooting with a Canon Rebel T4i and…
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Variegated Fritillary on Cosmos (a butterfly)
… at least I think it is “Variegated Fritillary”. See more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euptoieta_claudia
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Things with wings
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Nighty Night, Caterpillars!
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Caterpillar Observations
Yesterday we scooped up all the caterpillars on the rue and sweet fennel, which we believe are from Eastern Black Swallowtails. It was just in time because the rue, which was once covered in caterpillars, only had five left, and there was not a single chrysalis in sight. The sweet fennel was Here are a few observations from our first day with the bugs. 1. Caterpillars will fight over food. They do this head/upper torso butting action. 2. The little caterpillars are more aggressive and prone to showing their osmeterium, especially when being poked by a plant stem. 3. Caterpillars don’t appreciated being walked over by another caterpillar. 4. Thirteen…