Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
High infection can result in smaller wingspans and lower weights. Mating success decreases with higher parasite loads and, though females that mate and lay eggs have a shorter lifespan, they have no decrease in egg-laying. Spores are passed from female to caterpillar. Parasite levels vary between geographical populations ranging from 70% to 3%.
Monarch butterfly caterpillar D. p. plexippus Piedra Herrada, Mexico. The monarch butterfly or simply monarch (Danaus plexippus) is a milkweed butterfly (subfamily Danainae) in the family Nymphalidae. [6] Other common names, depending on region, include milkweed, common tiger, wanderer, and black-veined brown. [7]
The monarch butterfly is easily identified by its bold orange, black and white coloring. This fascinating insect goes through an amazing life cycle consisting of four stages: egg, larvae, pupa ...
[54] [55] As a result of these factors, reproducing monarchs lay fewer eggs on A. tuberosa than they do on most other milkweeds. [54] [51] While the plant's colorful flowers provide nectar for many adult butterflies, A. tuberosa may therefore be less suitable for use in butterfly gardens and monarch waystations than are other milkweed species. [54]
Female Monarchs lay their eggs exclusively on milkweeds, which provide the caterpillars and later adults with protection from predators, and it is speculated that milkweed may not have been available until western lands were cultivated, resulting in the expansion of the butterfly. [10]
For premium support please call: 800-290-4726 more ways to reach us
Pteromalus cassotis is a species of parasitic wasp in the family Pteromalidae that parasitizes the chrysalides of monarch butterflies. They are gregarious parasitoids, meaning a single female lays many eggs in a single host. Research into this species has documented that up to 425 adult wasps can emerge from a single chrysalis.
The caterpillar of the common tiger butterfly obtains a supply of poison by eating poisonous plants, which make the caterpillar and butterfly a distasteful morsel for predators. The most common food plants of the common tiger in peninsular India are small herbs, twiners and creepers from the family Asclepiadaceae, including: Asclepias ...