Keeping and breeding butterflies

I caught a peacock's eye caterpillar back in the summer.
I put it in a jar(I didn't close the lid) I wait until it hatches, it has already pupated, but I do not know what to do with it next and whether it will hatch at all?
we have two or three crawling animals in our yard every year. Last year I caught it too, but while I was at the camp, her parents lost it quite a bit.
how to distinguish day and night peacock eyes in the caterpillar and pupal stage?

You are, I believe, at the very beginning of the journey . In general, despite the similarity of Russian names, these are completely different butterflies, belong to different families. See the following links:
The day peacock's eye caterpillar (Inachis io) is a member of the family Nymphalidae.
http://hea.iki.rssi.ru/~nik/photo/pict/ins/ins05709e.jpg
Caterpillar Saturnia pyri-Night peacock's eye large (family Saturniidae-Saturnia, or peacock eyes)
http://macroid.ru/showphoto.php?photo=2183...ze=big&cat=4356

This post was edited by Dmitrich - 05.04.2011 10: 30

The following problem occurred.For the second year in a row, I can't get Cerura vinula out of the pupa. The butterflies seemed to come out of their pupae normally,but for some reason they flatly refused to spread their wings.

It was probably too dry in the room where you kept the harpies.

I only grow butterflies from pupae (tropics, en masse), and some of our own butterflies-which is interesting-I'll be happy to share information.

So I urgently need one answer to the question:
butterfly.Kiev offers to hang pupae of the tropics on the slats, tying the end of the abdomen. I saw on the site on one foam "pieces" with holes in the center, where the pupae are inserted, I began to use this method. I also think, isn't it even easier to just put ekukolki on cotton wool and on the bottom of the terrarium? Which method is better and why, YOUR OPINION IS VERY IMPORTANT!!!!!! Because there is a lot of work and large volumes-now 250 pupae, and then they promise to bring 500 more, and gluing and tying each one to the bar, sorry, is painfully stressful.

And in general, what conditions do you most recommend? While there is 25 heat and 60-80 humidity.

I want to raise butterflies from pupae could you help with the theory?my mail sokolov198612@mail.ru

I'm going to raise butterflies at home. If there is someone who is doing this and is ready to communicate, please respond! Maybe when you get the skills and experience you need and I can be useful to you. Write to ICQ 46987499 or here. Thank you.

I also want to start breeding butterflies like you.how far have you progressed in this area if so I would like you to help with the theory

Cocoons for breeding can be obtained here daph@list.ru

DO YOU LIVE IN THE MIDDLE ZONE AND WANT TO RAISE BUTTERFLIES IN WINTER? ACTIAS DUBERNARDI - YOUR CHOICE!

and where to get them?you don't sell?

what temperatures can tropical butterflies withstand and how does low temperatures affect them?thank you

After low temperatures, they become sluggish and unviable (below +10 C is undesirable).

Let me recommend that you choose a butterfly species based on the availability of food plants, the ability to grow it at home. Create the necessary volumes with ventilation, the ability to maintain humidity and temperature conditions. And don't forget to add "fresh blood" ,males or females from other populations. For example, we choose a swallowtail, you can grow umbrella ones yourself, arrange a corner for the caterpillars, grow them with a reserve , for example, dill, and you can start catching females in nature or get eggs in some other way. And good luck to you , in this most interesting lesson!

what temperatures can tropical butterflies withstand and how does low temperatures affect them?thanks

I think you'll be interested:

R. S. Ushatinskaya (1957) distinguishes the following six temperature zones::

1. The zone of active life lies on average in the range from 3 to 40°. Approximately in the middle of this zone are temperatures that ensure minimal mortality and maximum fecundity of insects.
2. The lower zone of experience (the zone of cold numbness). Here, the ability to survive depends on the level of temperature, the duration of its exposure and, of course, on the type of insect.
3. The lower lethal zone, in which body fluids freeze and crystallize, as well as damage to the protoplasm of cells by crystals. These irreversible changes are somewhat different in different species.
4. The vitrification zone, in which the liquid, instead of forming crystals, becomes vitrified, i.e. similar to glass. Vitrification is not possible in all insects. At the same time, all life processes are suspended, similar to suspended animation. In this state, the insect can tolerate cooling to almost absolute zero. However, the vitrified liquid is unstable and can gradually crystallize.
5. The upper zone of experience (heat shock zone). Just as in the lower zone of experience, the life span of insects depends on the level of temperature and the duration of its exposure.
6. Upper death zone, where irreversible phenomena occur: protein coagulation and enzyme inactivation.

In many ways, the answer to your question depends on the type and lifestyle. Insects that live in the temperate, and even more so in the polar zone, are most resistant to low temperatures. Many of these insects can easily tolerate repeated freezing and thawing. In the temperate zone, the resistance of insects to cold naturally varies depending on the season and is highest in the middle of winter, while the most resistant insects are those that winter not under the snow cover, but under the bark of trees and in empty plant stems. The cold resistance of aquatic insects is relatively low at any time of the year.

How tropical species will behave in the future is not known. Anyway, this is a big and interesting topic for experimental work, which you can do at home as an amateur entomologist . To do this, you just need: an object of research, a thermometer, a pencil, a notebook, a jar, a refrigerator, and basic scientific ingenuity. Go for it! Post the results on the barrel here! I am ready to discuss this with you.

Christ is Risen) Happy holidays to all!
I have such an event today, I will start from the beginning.
I caught several Ethmia fumidella butterflies and put them in one container, during the night the female laid a bunch of eggs, and while I was looking for something to feed the future caterpillars, they hatched! Now they are crawling, very fast, looking for food and I do not know what to feed them, I do not want them to die like this( Can someone tell me what to feed the aiih??? The caterpillars are starving... I don't know if it will last...

Try feeding sprouts of canary grass, which is sold in most pet stores as complementary food for cats and dogs. Easy grass like that.

Christ is risen!

Truly resurrected! Happy Orthodox holiday!

Martix, happy Holidays!
These caterpillars eat bodyak, you can also try to give thistle.
And today I found two bear caterpillars, huge, and at the same time they also ate, and they ate some sage, I found one doing this, so I brought both caterpillars and sage

By the way here is an interesting experiment with canary grass set up by Ch himself By Darwin.

Today I'm debugging a photo, and so, I found a plant that they started to eat:


But there is not enough of it, and the leaves have wilted, so I gave them a kind of bodyak leaf today, but I don't know there... I will observe whether they will accept it or not.
And photos of the caterpillars themselves, they are small, so I photographed them as best I could.

But it is not enough, and the leaves have wilted

So that the plant is not sluggish, you better pull it out by the roots, put the root in water. Take a plastic bottle of mineral water (preferably 2 liters), cut off the bottom. Put the plant inside, so that its root protrudes from the neck of the bottle and put it all (the neck with the plant, the bottle upside down) in a half-liter jar of water. Where the bottom was, tighten the mesh. In the neck of the bottle, you can also push cotton wool so that the caterpillars do not fall into the water.
In the photo, the caterpillars of some kind of micro-fire, or gelechiid, or something similar...

Martix, well, those first fluffy leaves are probably sage. In general, feed ratsenia for different species are indicated differently, but for this species
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethmia_bipunctella
bruise and comfrey, so you can also try to look for a bruise, now it should already sprout in theory, this is something like this
http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruise_ (plant)

okoem, this is a caterpillar of Ethmia fumidella, I got them as a result of catching the butterflies themselves, etc.))) The problem is that the main root of the first plant goes a meter deep, it is very large whole rhizome, and the fact that the depth of 30 cm is like a sprout-stem...((
okoem, the first 2 photos, this is something similar to a bruise(as it seemed to me), it is also planted for decorative purposes, here...
The new plant has been abandoned...

Well, now you will have to go there for the plant that they started eating, by the way, even polyphages don't really go to the plant that is different from what they ate for the very first time, so you need exactly what you ate for the first time. Bears, by the way, also eat a very similar plant. And so that the leaves are preserved, they can still be stored in the refrigerator tightly tied in a bag. Now, of course, under the root is not very effective to cut - very few leaves on top.

okoem, this is a caterpillar of Ethmia fumidella, I got them as a result of catching the butterflies themselves, etc.)))

Oh, I see. I thought you just found them on that plant."

Well, now you will have to go there for the plant that they started eating, by the way, it seems that even polyphages do not really switch to a plant that is different from what they ate for the very first time,

They do, but not always.
The leaves in the photo resemble zopnik. Or even two different types of it. Heart-shaped leaves-apparently zopnik tuberous.
Arctia festiva can also offer dandelion, plantain, onosma, wormwood, various thistles.

The caterpillars are small, from the beginning there were a lot of them, but I didn't expect that they would hatch so early and I didn't prepare a normal vessel, as a result they crawled around the room, there were 3 left, but I don't know if I will feed them... If you can repeat everything again, there are even more butterflies=)) And what is the approximate stage time of this caterpillar with abundant feeding?

And what is the approximate stage time of this caterpillar with abundant feeding?

I don't know about this one, but in general, most caterpillars develop about 3 weeks.

As a result, I was left with one caterpillar, already about a centimeter and a half, here it is:




Shed many times, probably every day, maybe more often))

This post was edited by Martix - 05.05.2011 19: 47

After all, at least one, and the bear caterpillars that I found will pupate, have already pupated, probably soon the butterflies will come out..

Uh-huh, we'll be waiting...

Uh-huh, we'll be waiting...

If it is Ethmia fumidella, it will have to wait a long time until next year.

Is it a chrysalis or a butterfly? And the fact that I have a caterpillar as if in hibernation fell...

A butterfly.
And when the caterpillar turns into a pupa, it is necessary to know what kind of development cycle this species has. For example, there are several variants: the pupa pupates for several days until spring at rest; the caterpillar falls into diapause for summer, feeds in autumn, molts and pupates, the caterpillar entangles itself in a light cocoon and is in the pre-pupation state until autumn, pupates in autumn. Another varian: the caterpillar overwinters, but this is doubtful, an early butterfly.

From the caterpillars of bears here are such beauties hatched in a terrarium, now we need to take them to the steppe.

Hierophis, congratulations! Beautiful butterfly)
Here are some new photos of my goose





Already grown up, acquired a brighter color=)

This post was edited by Martix - 09.05.2011 15: 35

She started crawling! For the second day crawling and not eating anything! Maybe decided to pupate? But why does it take so long to crawl??? Or is she just tired of this particular bush of forage plant, and she wants a fresher one?

And caterpillars can crawl for a day before they pupate, especially when there is no suitable place, for example, they need to pupate in the ground, but it is not there. But they eventually pupate. For this caterpillar in theory it is long overdue

She is crawling under a plastic cup now, and there is food at the bottom, but she doesn't take it, I hope she doesn't starve to death=)) Yesterday I'm sitting on the same Forum looking through pictures, look at her - and she started climbing out of the old "house"! I pushed away the bag with the elastic band and got out! It's good that I was there, otherwise I would be walking around the room somewhere...
Crawls for exactly a day, sometimes freezes in one place and sits there for a few minutes.

I think such caterpillars pupate under all sorts of stones, or maybe not. In general, you can fill it with earth, put crumpled paper, or set it on fire, maybe okoem will write what it needs exactly

Thank you)) I will wait for okoem's response
While I try to fill in the earth and paper))
(the caterpillar can be slightly more than 2 cm long when it seems to be "sleeping" - in this only state I measured)

Yes, this is already an overgrown caterpillar of 2 cm, and even in a compressed state for such a caterpillar, this is already obesity of the 1000th degree, so it will already pupate 100%) By the way, this "sleeps" may well be the beginning of metamorphosis, so you should not touch it.

Yes, she then "sleeps" then does not "sleep", crawls in general until now... I haven't added anything to it yet, but can it pupate at night? It's already been 3 weeks since she was born))

Pour in dry soil and pieces of wadded paper, and urgently! It is better to remove the fodder plant. Etmia pupate in all sorts of crevices, apparently she is looking for a gap.

especially when there is no suitable place, for example, they need to pupate in the ground, but it is not there. But they eventually pupate.

When there is no suitable place, it can simply die. If her "program", for example, is rigidly laid down that you need to dig, then she will crawl and look for soil. Either he finds it or he dies.

This post was edited by okoem - 13.05.2011 21: 48

Scared me
*I went to fill up some soil for cacti*