View allAll Photos Tagged CATERPILLAR
The Monarch Butterfly is one of the most beautiful of all butterflies, some say, and are considered the “king” of the butterflies, hence the name “monarch”. The monarch (Danaus plexippus) is a milkweed butterfly (subfamily Danainae), in the family Nymphalidae.
The butterfly is sometimes called the "milkweed butterfly" because its larvae eat the plant. Adult female monarchs lay their eggs on the underside of milkweed leaves.
With its bright colours, large size, and slow powerful flight, the monarch is probably the most widely recognized of all North American butterflies. The bright orange wings, which span 93 to 105 mm, have a thick black border containing two rows of white spots.
In North America, the monarch ranges from southern Canada to northern South America. It rarely strays to western Europe (rarely as far as Greece) from being transported by U. S. ships or by flying there if weather and wind conditions are right. It has also been found in Bermuda, Hawaii, the Solomons, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Australia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, the Azores, and the Canary Islands.
The monarch is in North America famous for its southward migration and northward return in summer from Canada to Mexico and Baja California which spans the life of three to four generations of the butterfly. The monarch is the only butterfly that migrates both north and south as the birds do on a regular basis.
This picture was taken in the outdoor aviary of the "De Passiflorahoeve" (Passiflorafarm) in Harskamp, the Netherlands.
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Rupsen van de monarchvlinder
De monarchvlinder of monarch (Danaus plexippus) is een dagactieve vlinder in de familie Nymphalidae. De monarchvlinder is één van de bekendste soorten vlinders van Noord-Amerika omdat de soort daar in grote aantallen voorkomt. De monarchvlinder trekt in de lente in verschillende generaties naar het noorden en keert in de herfst weer terug naar het zuiden. Hier overwinteren de vlinders in enorme groepen van soms tientallen miljoenen exemplaren.
De monarchvlinder is een vrij grote soort, de totale lichaamslengte varieert tussen de 43 en 50 mm en de spanwijdte bedraagt tot 10 centimeter. De vleugels zijn opvallend door de overwegend oranje kleur met zwarte strepen.
De monarchvlinder komt voor in Noord-, Midden en noordelijk Zuid-Amerika. De volwassen insecten trekken echter de gehele wereld over, tot oostelijk in noordelijk Afrika en delen van Europa. Westelijk kan de monarchvlinder Australië en grote delen van Azië bereiken. De dieren kunnen tot 4500 kilometer van hun geboortegrond worden aangetroffen.
De rupsen eten de bladeren van verschillende soorten zijdeplant. Deze planten zijn giftig en de rupsen slaan het gif op zodat ze zelf ook giftig worden. Ook de volwassen vlinders zijn hierdoor oneetbaar voor de meeste dieren. Een aantal andere vlinders lijkt hierdoor op de monarchvlinder, zodat vijanden denken dat deze soorten ook giftig zijn.
Deze foto is in de buitenlucht gemaakt in de vlindervolière voor Europese vlindersoorten van zorgboerderij De Passiflorahoeve bij Harskamp op de Veluwe noordelijk van Arnhem.
In deze vlindervolière worden vooral Europese vlinders gekweekt, ook in Nederland uitgestorven soorten, maar ook vlinders uit Noord-Amerika en Azië uit klimaatgebieden die overeenkomen met Nederland. Info www.passiflorahoeve.nl/
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All rights reserved. Copyright © Martien Uiterweerd (Foto Martien).
All my images are protected under international authors copyright laws and may not be downloaded, reproduced, copied, transmitted or manipulated without my written explicit permission.
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The Mullien (Verbascum thapsus) plant is being ravaged by a horde of hungry Mullein moth caterpillars (Cucullia verbasci) that seem to be unliked as food by birds.
Often, I'm more interested in the photography than the science behind my subject. I've looked at several varieties of green larvae on the internet, but I haven't yet identified the caterpillar I found yesterday. I've ruled out the luna moth, tomato worm, and other similar bugs.
The caterpillars feed on the swan plant or milkweed (Asclepias) They use warning colouration and toxicity from the milkweed to keep away most predators.
Well look what I found Brody! I believe this is a caterpillar but I don't know what kind it is. And what that pile of fluffy stuff is behind it. Did it just morph to a new stage? It's about a half of an inch long. All weeding operations were suspended as I ran for the camera! LOL
A caterpillar taking a walk on the boardwalk at Woodham Fen Nature reserve. I think it is a Small Tortoiseshell caterpillar, but I am happy to be corrected!
30 shots stacked in PS. This caterpillar was around 5cm in length. Taken at Staveley nature reserve.
Monarch caterpillar taking a break after munching the milkweed leaf he's on.
Wildwood lake, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
Thanks for looking!
A lovely sight on an autumn day, like a little ray of sunshine moving across the path. I stood guard as a horse and rider passed!
A couple more of the local wildlife. This is a Hawk Moth caterpillar. It is as big as my little finger. The head is on the left !
I just took a break from raking oak leaves to find this wonderful creature and could not resist getting the macro out to capture its beauty.
Медведица-кайя
Ночная бабочка из семейства Медведицы. Стадия гусеницы — с сентября по май. Зимует гусеница. Длина около 60 мм. При опасности гусеница падает с кормового растения на землю, сворачивается и притворяется мертвой.
Гусеницы являются полифагами, питаясь листьями различными видами травянистых и кустарниковых пород растений. Основные кормовые растения: малина, ежевика, калина, жимолость, вереск, борщевик, дрок. Питаются также листьями таких пород, как яблоня, земляника, груша, слива.
A Monarch caterpillar feeding upside down to confuse predators. Taken off my study steps. Every fall they utilize the tropical milkweed planted there. This generation of butterflies will migrate all the way to the Sierra Madres of Mexico and overwinter. Then next spring, they will lay eggs and begin the generational migration that will take this species all the way to the Canadian prairies before heading southward again.
Our beautiful world, pass it on.
A first, and very exciting find, for me today. I spotted this stunning alder moth caterpillar (Acronicta alni) in a lime tree in Lainshaw Woods, Stewarton.
Ideally I would have liked to have got a better dof, to show the impressive hairs, but the weather was awful, it was very windy, and the light was not great at all, and, typically, the caterpillar didn't want to stay still, so I was limited to a very shallow dof... just a thrill to find it and at least get a few shots.
A nice sized caterpillar on Sycamore....not much can make me happier :).....other than knowing the ID! :)