Butterflies are STILL FREE

Have you ever watched a butterfly deposit her eggs on plants in your yard, at the park, or maybe even at a butterfly sanctuary? Have you ever seen a teeny, tiny caterpillar just after it has hatched from its egg? Have you ever watched the caterpillar change into a chrysalis?




Have you ever seen a butterfly break from its chrysalis, hang there with its fat, plump body and short wings and then start to pump those built up fluids throughout its wings? And then hang there to dry before she takes her first flight?

If you've never seen any of these great wonders of the world, you are seriously missing out on one of God's greatest creations. With a lifespan from egg to death of only a few short weeks, where it takes about 30 days to go from egg to adult and then the butterfly will only live roughly four to six weeks. Poof! They're gone.

With their habitats being destroyed minute by minute, it's up to us to keep them alive and free, or they could be gone in a "poof." Take my challenge and help keep them around for us and future generations to enjoy.

All it takes is to plant host and nectar plants in your yard, your neighbor's yard, the park, the roadside, everywhere. Even just one container will do a lot and who knows you may find yourself hooked when you see that first beautiful Monarch or Black Swallowtail stop and sip some sweet nectar from, get this, YOUR flowers.

Check out the database on Caterpillar Host Plants, it will give you the answers to what plants the caterpillars in your area need. Do a little research and see what butterflies frequent your area. We know the Monarch is in almost all of the US.

There's an article at National Wildlife Federation's web site by Heather Millar about Restoring Rare Beauties. Read it and decide for yourself, do I help or wait and just hope that someone else will do it?

You can do it alone as shown in this article Surviving on a Wing and a Prayer where just one man, Thomas Emmel, saved the Schaus Swallowtail butterfly from near extinction. If he can do it alone, just think what we could do if we all banded together. We would not only be helping save the butterflies, but we would also reap the rewards of the beauty we created in our own little corner of the world.

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Photos for Sale

Butterfly Style - Laminated Print


Clyde - Framed


Perfection & Beauty - Laminated


Giant Swallowtail - Matted


Monarch on Gaillardia - Matted


White Peacock - Matted

Fill your garden with lots of nectar plants. Nectar plants include most flowers, some shrubs and even flowering trees. Plant daisies, coneflowers, zinnias, marigolds, salvia, asters, just to name a few.


Include host plants to keep the butterflies coming back. Host plants provide a home and food for the hungry caterpillars. Here's just a few you can plant: dill, parsley, milkweed, passion vine, cassias, pipevines, citrus, and spice bush.

Even a couple of large containers on a sunny patio or porch will bring in these lovely creatures. Any small area will do, but once they are there I know you'll want more!

Another very important thing I have to add is NEVER use pesticides. Not only are they harmful to the environment, but it will kill the caterpillars and the butterflies and other beneficial insects. If you feel it's really necessary, try mixing a small amount of Dawn Dishwashing liquid and water in a spray bottle and spray the insect pests directly. For more information on safely controlling your pest problems see my lens on Integrated Pest Management.

See what the Imperiled Butterflies Workgroup,
IBWG and the FWG are doing to help save the butterflies.

Buy a matted print for $38.00 and help save the Monarchs

I will donate a portion (50%) of the proceeds to MonarchWatch. MonarchWatch is not on Squidoo's list of charities and it is one of my favorites.

All butterfly photos in this lens (excluding Flickr) are copyrighted and may not be reproduced, copied or used in any form without prior written consent. Copyright © 2009 Donna Adamski - All rights reserved.

Postcard available here.

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Supported links:
Monarch Watch is dedicated to saving the Monarchs through tagging, monitoring and other conservation means. The Monarch Waystation Program was started for others to help the Monarchs every day and throughout their migration period. My yard is waystation 293 out of over 2,100 registered waystations.
Live Monarch Foundation raises thousands of butterflies and milkweed and offers free milkweed seeds to start your own conservation efforts to save the Monarch in your own backyard.
Michoacan Reforestation and Habitat Protection Fund helps the Monarch's winter habitat through reforestation of the land that has been devastated through development and construction.
Monarch Sanctuary provides financial and scientific support to preserve the natural balance and diversity of the oyamel fir forests that are the overwintering grounds for the Monarchs.
Monarch Butterfly Works toward conservation and offers a lot of great information on gardening tips, life cycle, biology and much more.
National Wildlife Federation A familiar foundation that really works to save all forms of wildlife worldwide.
UF Wildlife Ecology Their mission is to foster education, expand knowledge, and reward scholarships, using multi-disciplinary approaches, for the purpose of understanding, managing, and conserving biological resources.
Florida Wildlife Federation Affiliated with the National Wildlife Federation, their goals are to help the wildlife of Florida.
The Humane Society of the Treasure Coast - my local Humane Society Shelter.
Orphie G's Emporium Buy butterfly plants and seeds for your butterfly garden. This is my ebay store.

Other links:
Do you Squidoo? Try it, it's great! Make a lens about whatever subject you choose.
My Blog The Vent Site I just started this one. Got a gripe? Tell me about it, that's what this blog is about!
Integrated Pest Management Information on how to control the pests in your lawn and garden, limiting the use of pesticides.
Come Join My Network at Digg
Visit Nature's Beauty for some great products and gifts.

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