Pereserverance Pays Off!

Yesterday, I made it a point to seek out and rescue Monarch eggs and cats before the expected rains. One open field I normally find them in had turned up dozens of eaten eggs by an abundance of lacewings in that location. Unwilling to allow this to discourage my efforts, I headed off to the woods with my trusty pooch. After two hours of searching, we returned home with 33 eggs and four 1st and 2nd instar cats. Not bad!!!Often, once buds appear on milkweed plants, female Monarchs will lay their eggs on these. Ditto once pods begin to form. Both provide larvae with plenty of food for their ravenous appetites. One difficulty with the pods and buds is that very young cats are difficult to find! --LKR