The polydamas swallowtail caterpillars are on the move again. The birthwort, its host plant, is almost gone, as the influx of caterpillars took to eating it almost to nothing.
When they are finished they start inching around the garden, causing you to look down to make sure you’re not stepping on them, instead of up.
Some have gone into the butterfly house, while others have started the chrysalis process on our house with creating its silk girdle.
My garden has become my favorite place to be again with all of the work that has been done and still underway.
With the lack of rain, and the extreme dry conditions, I have taken to watering the garden almost nightly as I replanted a good amount of plants. The great part is all the repoted/moved plants are thriving.
While watering I spotted a few chunky pokydamas swallowtail caterpillars either resting, or munching away. They are definitely getting closer to the final instar where they will stop eating and make their chrysalis.
I always heard the saying, “plant them and they will come.” Gardening, well butterfly gardening, is truly rewarding and thrilling, as you can invite all kinds of species into your garden and watch their lifecycle unfold before your eyes.
The polydamas swallowtail, otherwise known as the gold rim swallowtail, is an incredibly fast flyer. The wings are constantly going. This swallowtail continued to fly in and get a quick snack from the Panama rose before taking off again.
The Dutchman pipe, its host plant, was incredibly impressive at the Cape Coral-Lee County Public Library butterfly garden. There were tons of flowers and it expanded a good portion of the fence. The polydamas never let mine grow enough before it’s egg bombed and chewed all the way down again. If you looked hard enough, there were tons of caterpillars in the plant.
This little polydamas swallowtail broke away from the pack and went for a solo stroll on my Dutchman pipe. It was strange, as they are usually huddled together at this size.
I have never seen so many polydamas swallowtails in my garden at once until yesterday. There were five fluttering about, one of which was leaving behind a ton of eggs, continuing the amazing cycle of the butterfly.
The polydamas lays yellow to orange eggs in clusters of 10 to 14, which can typically be spotted on newly developed stems, or growing tips, of the Dutchman pipe. The butterfly tends to lay its eggs on the Dutchman pipe that are in sunny areas, although the caterpillars have a higher survival rate in the shade.
The eggs can be yellow to orange in color and 1 mm in diameter. As they mature the eggs will turn a greenish color as the larvae develop.
