Strange new catterpillars - could they be ulysses butterflies?

Coming home from work yesterday I noticed that something had been nibbling on my new lime tree!  Well, this is not good, as it is just a very small lime - but what to do!  Very interesting looking catterpillars, and there were two of them.  I picked  a few branches of my neighbours kaffir lime tree and put them into a vase.  Then carefully transferred the catterpillars to their new home.
Another one was moved...  You can clearly see the shape of the kaffir lime - like two leaves stuck together.

They seem to like their new home and settled right in for a meal, funnily enough there were some of the same catterpillar on my neighbours tree, so at least I know that this is  also a plant they would have chosen.
 She thinks it is a ulysses butterfly - how lovely!
 Funnily enough I have another plant in the back that was specially chosen as a ulysses catterpillar host,  but figured these might have a preference for the citrus flavour!  The ulysses butterflies are difficult to catch on film as you can only see their iridescent blue wings when they are flitting around. (very fast!)

When I stepped back I found yet another catterpillar, .... a different type!

so I have  a little catterpillar city outside my front door.  It will be very interesting to see what happens next and hopefully I will be able to follow the life cycle with photos - stay tuned!

A while back I was fascinated to see the wonderful post written on the Flower Hills Farm blog - to see that  follow this link - monarch-marveler-momentous-migration   Gosh I hope I can capture some photos half as good as hers....

Comments

  1. LizSun Sep 19, 03:02:00 AM

    Funny, I just did a post on butterflies! Those gorgeous green caterpillars look a lot like tomato hornworms, or tobacco hornworms--they preyed on my tomatoes one year. if so, be careful--they are destructive!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. africanaussieSun Sep 19, 08:23:00 AM

    thanks for cour comment Liz - loved your post! Butterflies seem to be the theme of the day!

    ReplyDelete
  3. RoslynMon Sep 20, 08:28:00 AM

    I knew I'd seen them before and got curious, so looked up your caterpillar. It's a swallowtail. (the one with the red spots on their hind wings) They start off brown and white and turn green as they grow and love citrus.

    ReplyDelete
  4. africanaussieMon Sep 20, 09:18:00 AM

    Hi Missy,
    The ulysses butterfly is part of the swallowtail family, so that would make sense. It does look like all the photos I see searching for the ulysses butterfly catterpillar. I see that chequered swallowtail, which I think is what you mean, but have never seen those in my garden. we do have tons of ulysses. I am not sure how long this whole process takes, but I watch them every day....

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

I love interacting with all my readers, thank you for your comments. Have a great day!

Popular posts from this blog

Up-cycling fabrics

Image
   In our hot and humid climate, jeans are not big movers in our op shop.  We had a $1 a pair sale rack, and still have full racks..... so I decided to make up a few different bags to see if we can somehow save these items from landfill.  Re-fashioning those items into something useful.  I made a few variations just to try out the market and sold this one on the first day they were put out! Each one is individual, depending on what fabric I have available. I tend to lay things out, and then just play around a bit.   Here I am laying out all the options before I start sewing.  I have joined a facebook group which is so inspirational and supportive.      Up-Cycled Cloth Collective | Facebook So often, it is just a case of seeing what is there, and then using it in the best way possible.  I was excited to find this tote bag, which was perfect as the lining of a bag for a teenager. this was also snapped up quickly. The bags were hung up at the op shop and hopefully this will continue to be
Read more

Garden share collective June 2014

Image
Once again another month has rolled by and it is time to link up with  Lizzie at   strayedtable  for our monthly collective where we share what has happened in our gardens for the last month and what we hope to be working on for the next month.  Wrapping up May and heading into June. Last month I wanted to work on: Seed tape .... I did make seed tape, and did a tutorial on the processs - you can see it  here.   It was fun, and worked well, expecially with kids. Mostly though I see a space and throw a few seeds in.  I can see myself doing it at the beginning of a planting season. Worms . .... I have been adding a little of the worm castings every time I plant something, and as a side dressing when plants seem to need a bit of a boost.  It does seem to help. Sitting .... plenty of that - I like the new (original) location of the swing where we have a long view of the garden. - veggie garden is just around that corner.... Eat veggies out of the garden .... so far we have
Read more

I have something to tell you.....

Image
Come on in to my garden.... I have something to tell you  Sit down in the comfy chair  for a little while, and listen to the tinkling of the wind chimes - are you relaxed? Good!  Remember how I entered that garden competition, and the judges came, and they wandered down my paths, taking photos?  Yes! I won runner up! a Fifty dollar gift card ........ from a real nursery, not the big box store that I normally shop at.  Oh gosh, how exciting.... I wonder what I will buy? Thank you Cairns Regional Council!
Read more