What just happened???

Good grief...a few weeks ago I was happily eating milkweed and then I went to sleep after hanging myself upside down.  And now, I've got these great big...flappy things on my back!  What happened to my beautiful striped jumpsuits, and WHY am I dressed in polka dots now?   What the heck just happened???  And what on earth am I supposed to do with these big herking things?


I was delighted to awaken to find one of my monarch chrysalis' ready to open today.  Temps were a bit cool so this handsome fellow took his sweet time entering the world - in fact, I brought his container inside just to help things along.  After a suitable amount of time sitting in the sun, inflating his wings and just contemplating life, I gently coaxed him onto my finger and them onto some nice lantana in the garden.  He decided that he'd just as soon sit quietly for now - not unusual.  He probably won't feed until tomorrow - normal behavior.  This is my fifth release so far this summer with, hopefully, many more to follow.

As for me, I'm a bit under the weather today - I think it is weather related allergies, but whatever the case, I awoke feeling exhausted and horribly sinusy.  Decided (wisely, I think) to bale out on my walk this morning.  Instead, spent some quiet time pottering around in the garden.  

The hummies are rip-roaring around out there, bragging their tiny butts off about their big Olympic wins and generally irritating the other birds, not to mention the butterflies.  Three more pics from today on Flickr, starting HERE - two extreme close ups of monarchs and one macro of a hummie.

And now, I'm off to curl up with a book for a bit before starting dinner.

Debbi

And, as is sometimes the case, there was also a failure today with a chrysalis that hadn't looked good and that I'd put in "quarantine".  Unfortunately, the butterfly was weak and deformed when it finally came out, unable even to cling to a piece of mesh.  I made the decision to euthanize it - never easy, but the only thing to do under these circumstances.  Monarch eggs and caterpillars are susceptible to so many dangers, from predation to nasty viruses, which is probably what this one had.