- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Never be late for dinner or it might be all gone.
Take the case of the Mexican sunflowers, Tithonia rotundifola, that we planted last April for the monarchs. Monarchs seem to favor Tithonia more than any other nectar source in our pollinator garden. Second choice: the butterfly bush, Buddleia davidii.
May, June, July, and August came and went. The invited (and expected) guests were a "no show." Didn't they make reservations? Or did they forget?
The Tithonia drew honey bees, long-horned bees, syrphid flies, a praying mantis, and assorted butterflies. No monarchs.
In September, entomologist David James of Washington State University, who studies migratory monarchs, announced the monarchs are on their way from the Pacific Northwest to their overwintering sites along coastal California. "They're coming," he said.
Finally, on Sept. 16, a single monarch glided in, sipped some nectar on the Buddleia for a few seconds and left. Another monarch stopped by on Sept. 26, nectared on the Tithonia for a couple of seconds and vanished.
Where are all the dinner guests?
Finally, at 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 3, a male monarch arrived for dinner. And what a 12-course dinner it was on the Tithonia's remaining 12 flowers. He paused once to sample nectar from the Buddleia, but he obviously preferred the Tithonia.
Frankly, it's not been a good year for monarchs in our pollinator garden. Monarchs totally ignored the milkweed, their host plant, and almost disregarded the nectar sources. In comparison, back in 2016, monarchs laid about 300 eggs on our milkweed. In the migratory season, it was not uncommon to see seven monarchs in our garden at one time.
If any more monarchs arrive, they'll not get much Tithonia or Buddleia to fuel their flight to the overwintering sites. They'll have to settle for what's left of the nectar sources: African blue basil, catmint, lion's tail, Mexican petunia, and honeysuckle.
We're just glad one dinner guest showed up, although he was almost too late for dinner.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Have are you faring during the COVID-19 crisis?
If you have a pollinator garden--or access to you--and a camera, you can step out of The Great Indoors and enjoy The Great Outdoors.
A newly eclosed Western Tiger Swallowtail, Papilio rutulus, however, can take your breath away.
This one recently visited our butterfly bush, Buddleia davidii, in our pollinator garden. It fluttered across the garden and headed straight toward one bush: the aptly named butterfly bush.
Wikipedia tells us: "The genus is found in four continents. Over 60 species are native through the New World from the southern United States south to Chile, while many other species are found in the Old World, in Africa, and parts of Asia, but all are absent as natives from Europe and Australasia. The species are divided into three groups based on their floral type: those in the New World are mostly dioecious (occasionally hermaphrodite or trioecious), while those in the Old World are exclusively hermaphrodite with perfect flowers."
There's a movement afoot NOT to plant Buddleia davidii (see the North American Butterfly Association's "The Great Butterfly Bush Debate"), but we've had ours for a decade, we keep it under control, and we love it for its beauty, its aroma, and its ability to draw a wide variety of insects.
Insects love it, too.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
It's Thanksgiving Day, and what better day to stop and be thankful for not only family and friends, but for the beauty around us.
That would include insects, including the stunning Western tiger swallowtail (Papilio rutulus).
Last summer we enjoyed watching a very gravid female, with a three-to-four-inch wingspan, nectaring on a butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii) in our Vacaville pollinator garden.
She also nectared on Verbena before departing--probably to lay her eggs on a nearby host plant, liquidambar (sweet gum) or a sycamore.
For just a few minutes, the Western tiger swallowtail graced our pollinator garden with her breathtaking beauty. We are thankful for her presence, and the presence of all the pollinators, past, present and future, in our little pollinator garden.
"Without the actions of pollinators, agricultural economies, our food supply, and surrounding landscapes would collapse," points out the Pollinator Partnership. "Birds, bats, bees, butterflies, beetles, and other small mammals that pollinate plants are responsible for bringing us one out of every three bites of food."
Happy Thanksgiving!
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
One of the joys of planting a pollinator garden is watching majestic butterflies flutter in and sip a little nectar.
Today a Western tiger swallowtail (Papilio rutulus) took a liking to a butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii) in our Vacaville garden.
The "very gravid" female (as identified by Art Shapiro, distinguished professor of evolution and ecology at the University of California, Davis) also nectared on Verbena before departing--probably to lay her eggs on a favorite host plant, liquidambar (sweet gum) or the nearby sycamore.
During her 10-minute visit that graced our garden, the brilliantly colored yellow-and-black butterfly, with a wingspan of three to four inches, managed to evade the California scrub jays looking for a quick meal.
A meal for the butterfly, none for the bird.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
A flash of orange.
Usually we see assorted orange butterflies--Gulf Fritillaries (Agraulis vanillae) or Painted Ladies (Vanessa cardui) or Monarchs (Danaus plexippus)--on our butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii).
This time the flash of orange proved to be a California Tortoiseshell (Nymphalis californica).
Its wings are pumpkin orange with huge black spots while the underwings are dullish brown and gray, resembling a dead leaf. What a perfect camouflage!
This particular Cal Tortie is probably a female, according to Art Shapiro, distinguished professor of evolution and ecology at the University of California, Davis. He has monitored the Central Valley butterfly population since 1972 and maintains a research website.
"Along with the Painted Lady, this is a mass migrant that makes news at irregular intervals by tying up traffic!" Shapiro says on his website. "The 'Tortie' overwinters as an adult and can sometimes be seen sunning itself in midwinter on mild days. It is generally common in foothill canyons in late winter, ovipositing on the young, tender growth of various species of Wild Lilac (Ceanothus)."
And just as the Gulf Frits can defoliate its host plant, the passionflower vine, so, too, can the Tortie defoliate its host plant.
"The spiny, black-marked-with-yellow larvae feed gregariously, without a web, and in big years can defoliate whole stands of the plants," Shapiro notes on his website. "They often pupate on the bare, leafless stems en masse, the grayish-violet pupae looking like some strange kind of leaf and twitching in unison when disturbed. Adults emerge in late May to early June and almost immediately emigrate, going north or east and upslope."
They're often misidentified as monarchs, Shapiro told the recent Butterfly Summit at Annie's Annuals and Perennials, Richmond. He also mentions this on his website.
"Breeding localities in summer vary widely from year to year - sometimes in the high southern Sierra, sometimes in the Cascades... sometimes only in far northeastern California or even farther north," according to Shapiro's website. "The migrant females lay on the tender growth of high-altitude Ceanothus such as Tobaccobrush and Snowbrush, which again may be defoliated. Adults emerge in late July and migrate to estivating grounds, generally above tree-line. These are often in the high country of Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, but can even be in the Trinity Alps, South Cascades, or (as in 2005) on Mount Rose! Estivating Torties do little but 'hang out,' and many high-altitude hikers have described their encounters with millions of them in mystical terms (they often identify them as Monarchs!). In late September these butterflies scatter downslope to hibernate in the foothills--they are the late-winter butterflies of the new year. Estivators-hibernators thus may live 9 or 10 months as adults." (See more about this amazing butterfly on his website.)
Naturalist and insect photographer Greg Kareofelas, an associate of the Bohart Museum of Entomology, UC Davis, says there are a lot of Cal Torties around now. And when they disperse, "they can end up anywhere, including the valley. So not often seen in the valley, but not all that unusual."
This butterfly ended up on its namesake, the butterfly bush in our Vacaville pollinator garden.
