A few months ago, I added three asclepias tuberosa, orange butterfly milkweed, to my garden for the first time. I have three varieties in the garden now, which also include balloon milkweed, and giant milkweed. I will definitely be adding additional native milkweed to the garden to help the monarch butterfly population thrive in Southwest Florida.

The monarch butterflies are beautiful to watch as they flutter about the garden. This female spent a lot of time going from the milkweed to various nectar sources before returning to lay eggs.

The monarch butterfly’s scientific name is Danaus Plexippus, which means “sleepy transformation” in Greek. The male has two black spots in the center of its lower wings and are larger in size than the female. According to the National Wildlife Federation, the spots are scent glands, which help the males attract females.

She left quite a few eggs on the milkweed plant.

The monarch caterpillars feed solely on milkweed leaves, which produces glycoside toxins, according to the National Wildlife Federation, which deters other animals from eating the caterpillars. The toxins are stored making them taste bad and remains after they emerge into a butterfly, continuing to protect them.

There are four stages in the life cycle of a monarch butterfly: the egg, the larvae (caterpillar) the pupa (chrysalis) and the butterfly.

After the butterfly lays a cream colored egg on the bottom of a milkweed leaf, it takes anywhere from three to five days to hatch. The larvae chews a small hole in the egg to wiggle free. Once it emerges it consumes the rest of the egg before moving onto the leaf.

Once she finished laying eggs, she rested on a tree nearby, an orange jasmine.