Monarch Butterfly

This is a male monarch adult butterfly that was raised from a caterpillar.

Wet Meadows

This is a valley floor wet meadow where you can usually find Monarchs between July through September.  Usually these areas are undeveloped agricultural areas and have enough moisture to support Russian Olive Trees.  More.

Milkweed

This is showy milkweed, one of the larval host plants of the Monarch. The scientific name for this particular variety is Asclepias speciosa. They call it milkweed because it bleeds white when you pick a leaf off a stem. Showy milkweed can be found in agricultural fields, agricultural canals, and in isolated spots in mountain canyons.  

Because Monarch females prefer to roost in trees during the late morning and afternoons of hot summer days, when they do fly, they tend to prefer to lay their eggs on milkweeds growing near or under the trees where they roost. More.

Two Monarch Caterpillars

In the Great Basin and Rocky Mountains, the key to finding monarch caterpillars on showy milkweed in their habitat is to look on younger, healthier milkweeds growing either in A) an agricultural canal B) on milkweeds taking refuge under Russian Olive Trees in a wet meadow agricultural situation or C) on small pockets of showy milkweed growing in canyons.  Younger monarch caterpillar feed on the ventral side of the milkweed where their feeding damage is unique as compared to milkweed bugs in that they burrow a hole in the center of the leaf. 

Monarch Laying Eggs

Another way to get monarch caterpillars is to capture a live female with a butterfly net, place her in a cage with cuttings of milkweed and place the cage near a sunlit window and watch her lay eggs.  

The main difference between Monarch females and males is the females are a more smokier reddish brown color and males have dark spot (called a scent patch) on the hindwing.   More.

Monarch Live Female in a Cage

Here is an example of a screen cage used to get monarch females to lay eggs. Place fresh cuttings of milkweed leaves in a water bottle and place them inside the cage.  Place the cage either next to a sunlit window or outside. Intermittant of filtered sunlight seems to work better than constant, direct sunlight.

Building such a cage can be somewhat labor intensive unless you have someone good with tools around the house. Another alternative to building a cage is to simply take a five gallon bucket and cut out a 6" by 6" window from the side and replace with nylon netting. Do the same with the lid.

Other alternatives include buying similar cages online.

Cut away eggs individually from milkweed

Newly hatched monarch caterpillars--termed first instars--can be cannibalistic if they find another monarch egg. (They might eat it.) The best thing to do is to cut away the monarch egg and place it individually into a small plastic container, and wait for it to hatch.

Separate eggs

Once you've cut the egg out of the plant, place it in a small container.  A restaurant or fast food condiment solo cup (with lid) is ideal.  More.

Closeup of Monarch egg

Here is Nicky Davis' closeup photograph of a monarch egg.  Eggs usually take 5-10 days to hatch in nature depending upon temperature.  More.

Monarch egg up closer

Here is a closer photograph on a monarch egg.  Photo Todd Stout

Monarch Egg Developing

Here is a photo of a monarch ovum showing the head capsule of the developing first instar caterpillar.  Photo courtesy William Zittrich.  William's website is http://www.wyllz.com/id177.htm.

Monarch Egg Develops

This is a series of photos of the developing egg of the monarch butterfly as it hatches into a young first instar caterpillar.  Photos were taken by William Zittrich.  William's website is http://www.wyllz.com/id177.htm.

Monarch First Instar Caterpillar

Here is a photograph of a recently hatched monarch first instar caterpillar. 

It is important, while looking for caterpillars in the wild, to familiarize yourself with this particular chew pattern (some call it skeletonizing) that is unique to young monarch caterpillars.  Many insects chew on milkweed plants; but if you are familar with monarch's distinctive chewmarks, it will make your caterpillar hunting more productive. 

Using this technique (recognizing the unique chewmarks of your early instar caterpillars) can be very helpful with searching for other species of butterflies as well.

Monarch First Instar Caterpillar

First instar monarch caterpillar.

Monarch first instar chew mark damage

Here is an example of the chew mark damage provided by a young instar monarch caterpillar.

Monarch Second Instar Caterpillar

Closeup photo of a monarch second instar caterpillar.

Milkweed Bouquet

This is a picture of milkweed cuttings in water (milkweed bouquet).  The quality of your milkweed cuttings will only stay green and useable for about five days at which time you will need to replace it out again.  The best way to move caterpillars from old plant to new plant is to cut around the caterpillar with scissors and place it on top of the new cuttings. 

Milkweed Cuttings inside Bucket Cage

Once you have setup your milkweed bouquet and have placed your caterpillars on it, place that inside a rearing cage or a five gallon bucket with a screen lid. It is important that your rearing setup has a screen lid in order to provide plenty of ventillation; not because the caterpillars need to breathe; but moreso because caterpillar droppings need to dry. (Otherwise caterpillars can get sick.)

Monarch Fourth Instar Caterpillar

Recently moulted fourth instar caterpillar adjacent to its old third instar head capsule.

Monarch Fourth Instar Caterpillar