July 23, 2009 @ 6:18 am | Filed under: Butterflies,Gardening,Nature Study,Photos
How many times have you read The Very Hungry Caterpillar aloud?
It’s got to be in the hundreds for me. Seems like every single one of my kids has had a time when that book was the favorite above all others.
But in all these years, I’ve never actually seen a real caterpillar egg—until now.
Can you see it? The little white dot on the underside of the leaf, quite near the stem. I watched the butterfly lay this egg and immediately afterward I ran inside for the camera, so this photo was taken no more than two minutes into the egg’s existence.
I hope the other caterpillars don’t eat that leaf. They are munching away and growing quite fat. We’ve counted up to eleven at one time but it’s likely we’re missing a good many. Counting callerpidders has become Rilla’s favorite thing to do. Mine too!
Butterfly watch: two monarchs, a tiger swallowtail, several painted ladies, and assorted sulphurs and cabbage whites. Also a possible viceroy sighting but Jane, my resident expert, wasn’t there to confirm.
As for our blue flower…Jenn, I was sure it was a cornflower too, but the rest of them are coming up—
pink!
(The color’s a bit washed out in this photo. The flower is really a soft shade of pale pink. Hmm….)
butterflies, caterpillars, milkweed, monarchs
Comments RSS | TrackBack URI
Comment a lot? Register here. Already registered? Login here.
Want your own gravatar? Get one here.
hungry caterpillar? no idea what you’re talking about.
I think our copy fell apart
I once found a tiger swallowtail caterpillar and when it emerged from the cocoon, it wasn’t a butterfly, but an ugly wasp-thing. boo.
great pictures!
monica
Posted on July 23rd, 2009 at 7:24 amOh, I can’t wait to show my 4 year old son this picture. Not only did I have to buy him a copy of the book because we were over-using the library copy, but I also had to buy a stuffed very hungry caterpillar because he wouldn’t stop sleeping with the book.
And, to be honest, the way he eats my son IS the very hungry caterpillar.
Posted on July 23rd, 2009 at 7:51 amHmm…maybe it’s some kind of Dianthus/Pink?
Posted on July 23rd, 2009 at 9:37 amYour blue flower (and the pink one) are bachelor’s buttons. They grow beautifully from seed and (at least in our zone) are happily self seeding annuals. They also come in white. Love the photos of your caterpillers. Next house I have I intend to garden more for the butterflies.
Posted on July 23rd, 2009 at 10:29 amNot only did my dd love that book, but so did I when I was a child. Congratulations on your caterpillars! And the flowers are all so beautiful. I especially love the last one, whatever it may be.
Posted on July 23rd, 2009 at 1:50 pmThe pink and blue flowers are called “cornflowers” or “Bachelor Buttons,” or Centaurea cyanus. I’d love to know where they seld-seed like weeds; I always have a struggle getting them to grow.
Posted on July 23rd, 2009 at 5:03 pmDear Melissa – I LOVE your flowers/caterpillars photos!
Posted on July 23rd, 2009 at 5:31 pmAbout this tiny white egg:
does your camera has a macro setting – it usually is market with a little flower.
This will let you to come very close to the egg and still show it sharp.
Try it!
Huggs to you and All the Gang!
Enjoy your Summer in your Colorful Garden!
Helen
New reader.
Our homeschooling group attended a class at a local park, during which we went into the field and searched for caterpillar eggs. I’d never seen one before, and it was so much fun to peek underneath the leaves for them.
That’s a wonderful photo of the caterpillars.
Posted on July 23rd, 2009 at 9:05 pmLissa, those flowers look like bachelor buttons, but I’m no expert. Once, a few years ago, in a wildflower packet, I got those, and Grandma and my MIL called them bachelor buttons.
And I see that’s the same as a cornflower. *slapping forehead* (link here) Mine were a few shades of blue and purple and pink. Quite a pretty bouquet, when the little girls pick them…
Posted on July 24th, 2009 at 1:30 am“Sometimes I think p’raps I’m a bird”: Naturalists in Literature — Here in the Bonny Glen says:
[...] posts: “Some breezy open wherein it seemeth always afternoon” “A little egg lay on a leaf” “At first I could only hear people [...]
Posted on March 7th, 2010 at 5:35 pmBooknotes: The Dangerous World of Butterflies — Here in the Bonny Glen says:
[...] or: the benefits of strewing “A little egg lay on a leaf” Our backyard gave us a going-away present The tragic tale of Homer the Caterpillar, parts one and [...]
Posted on April 3rd, 2010 at 4:33 pm