Catch and Raise Monarch Caterpillars

Monarch butterflies need your help. Threats, including pesticides and loss of milkweed habitat needed to lay their eggs and for their caterpillars to eat, are having a devastating impact on their populations and the migration. Unless we act now to help the monarch, this amazing butterfly could disappear in our lifetime. With your help, we can ensure we have Monarchs for years to come. The care that goes into catching, raising, and releasing them pays off when you see the wings of a beautiful monarch emerge from the chrysalis. Only about 1 out of 10 monarch caterpillars will make it to adulthood in the wild, so become a foster parent today for a little caterpillar!

Steps

Setting Up the Habitat

  1. Do some research. Before you go out and find your little friend, it's very important that you go online and do some basic research on caterpillars and monarchs specifically. The more knowledgeable you are, the better care you will provide for your new friend. Do some research on basic anatomy and common diseases among caterpillars and butterflies. This way, you know what to look for if your new friend gets sick.
  2. Buy a suitable container. Like any other animal, the size of your container should be dependent on the amount of caterpillars you want to keep. A thoroughly cleaned pickle jar will be suitable for one caterpillar, but two or three caterpillars will require a larger container. Small animal travel carriers are a good choice and can be bought for as little as $5 at most retailers. Transparent storage containers can be used for larger broods. .
    • Consider buying a butterfly tent; they are inexpensive and available online. The new caterpillars don't necessarily need an enclosure but make sure you always have lots of newspaper or paper towels underneath to catch the droppings (frass). Once they are big and plump, they will need an enclosure to make their chrysalis' at the top.
  3. Use the right lid. Despite conventional wisdom, metal mason jar lids with holes in them can lead to poor ventilation, causing the jar to become too hot or too humid. Unless you are using a travel carrier with a ventilated lid, replace the lid with a thin piece of fabric and a rubber band.
  4. Find the right place for the habitat. Keep it in an air conditioned room and out of the sunlight. Sunlight promotes mold and fungus growth, which is detrimental to monarchs. If you don't have a potted plant in the enclosure, replace the milkweed leaves every day. Caterpillars get all of their hydration from the milkweed leaves, so they need to be extremely fresh.
    • If you run out of milkweed and the caterpillars look plump and ready to pupate in a few days, you can feed them pumpkin! That's right, they will eat squash and be fine.
  5. Add any amenities. You can make hammocks out of twigs and fabric or beds out of cotton balls. Some aquarium or hamster decorations can also be used.
  6. Provide milkweed. Milkweed is the only plant that monarch caterpillars will eat. Go online and find some local variations of milkweed and then go searching. Milkweed is a very common type of plant, but identifying it is the tricky part. Once you've located a milkweed plant, collect about three leaves and add them to the habitat. You can buy milkweed from a nursery to harvest from later.
    • Be careful because most stores sell milkweed sprayed with chemicals which will kill your caterpillars. Make sure you ask at your local nursery or find milkweed plants in your area; many nurseries cater to butterfly lovers and understand the importance of safe milkweed. If your nursery has Giant Milkweed, definitely grab a few plants; it lasts a long time and is a great backup plant.

Attracting Monarchs to Gather Your Caterpillars (or Eggs)

  1. Make sure its the right time of year. Most months of the year, you'll probably be able to find monarchs to some extent. You're unlikely to find any caterpillars in July or August, and it would be almost impossible to find caterpillars in November through January unless you are in a tropical region that doesn't get cold. For any other months, it's possible to find eggs or caterpillars.
  2. Look for milkweed. Monarchs cannot survive without milkweed because they only lay eggs on milkweed and their caterpillars only eat milkweed plants. Outside of dense or damp forests, anywhere there's milkweed, there's a chance of monarch caterpillars.
    • Better yet, plant your own milkweed, lots and lots of milkweed. No need to break the bank; due to the current monarch crisis, many organizations, like livemonarch.com offer free milkweed seeds. Set up about 10 pots with soil, add seeds, wet thoroughly and cover with saran wrap. Once they are sprouting, remove the saran wrap and depending on the type of milkweed, place outside, in a greenhouse or inside. Once the milkweeds are at least 2 feet tall or have lots of leaves they are ready to go. They need to be outside in order for the monarchs to find them, and you don't have to worry, they will find them!
  3. Look out for the monarchs' arrival. As soon as you see a monarch visiting, search the underside of milkweed leaves. She probably left some eggs. The eggs are a clear white color and are often laid one per leaf. Shortly after the eggs will hatch, microscopic caterpillars will emerge but grow very quickly as they devour every milkweed leaf in sight. When they reach a week old, they'll be black, yellow, and white striped. Some people bring in the leaves with the eggs on them but it's recommended to do that only if you can bring in the potted plant so they have moist, healthy leaves.
  4. Decide how many caterpillars you want. The size of the habitat is not the biggest issue. Monarch caterpillars very easily contract serious diseases. If one catches something, it could infect the entire brood. The more caterpillars you keep, the more chances go up that one of them will catch something. It is unwise to keep more than three in one container, no matter the size. For jars, limit one. For travel carriers and larger, limit three.
  5. Transfer. If you don't have the permanent home with you when you find the caterpillar, put it and the leaf inside a mason jar and transfer it to the habitat.

Caring for the Caterpillars

  1. Replace the milkweed leaves every day. Caterpillars get all of their hydration from the milkweed leaves, so they need to be extremely fresh! Not only that, but older leaves could harbor mold or diseases.
  2. Be a good housekeeper. Keep the bottom of the cage clean by replacing the newspaper or paper towels at least every few days. If you are putting milkweed cutting in a glass, make sure the water is covered or the caterpillars will crawl in and drown. Be patient. Once your monarch begins to pupate, let it be. Do not move it or the stick that it is on. Remove the plant or cuttings from the habitat unless other caterpillars have not pupated.
  3. Keep a close eye on each caterpillar and chrysalis. If any of the caterpillars turn black, remove them immediately because they may be sick and the other caterpillars can become sick too. If a chrysalis becomes dark or leaks fluid, you may need to remove it also. It is extremely common for some monarchs to become sick or emerge with deformed or curled wings. This is not your fault; it's nature taking its course. If all goes well, a beautiful monarch butterfly will emerge in approximately ten days.
    • Many Monarchs have something called OE and it isn't something that can be cured so what do you do with sick caterpillars, chrysalis' or butterflies? The most humane thing is to put them in a cup and place in the freezer. It doesn't hurt them, it allows them to rest in peace. If you have a butterfly that can't fly, you have the option to keep it. You can feed it sugar water or put a little Gatorade in a cap but the butterfly probably won't live very long.
    • OE is a parasite and doesn't effect people, only monarchs, so don't worry about your own exposure to it.
  4. Be patient. Once your monarch begins to pupate, let it be. Do not move it or the stick that it is on. Remove all leaves from the habitat unless other caterpillars have not pupated. The monarch will emerge in approximately ten days.

Releasing the Monarch Butterflies into the Wild

  1. Do not assist emergence. Once your monarch begins to emerge from the pupa, do not assist it. This emergence will give the monarch the chance to stretch its newly developed muscles, similar to a chick using new muscles to hatch from an egg.
  2. Give your monarch some time and space. Once it is fully out of the chrysalis, it will send blood into the veins of its wings by slowly pumping them, so make sure it has room to fully extend its wings. After sufficient time to accomplish this, your butterfly should be ready and able to fly.
  3. Let them go. Bring the enclosure outside and feel free to gently allow the butterfly to crawl onto your hand it by putting a few fingers in front of it. Say goodbye, knowing you've made a difference, especially to this butterfly, you can place it on a plant or tree or keep it on your hand because when it is ready, it will happily flutter away, grateful to have met you. Now give yourself a pat on the back! You've just helped to ensure the future of monarch butterflies, a butterfly at a time.

Tips

  • Create a beautiful habitat. Nicely decorated habitats can be just as pretty as nice aquariums.
  • Once the enclosure or container is free from caterpillars and chrysalis, use a diluted bleach solution to clean it.

Warnings

  • If you collect the caterpillar as an egg, be careful not to get your hopes up! Even if it's a white egg, laid singly on a milkweed plant, you just might end up with some other kind of egg!
  • Do not give your caterpillar a pool to drink from; they can fall in and drown, and it can cause the container to become too hot or humid.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

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