The dark gray color may mean the egg is just about to hatch. I don't know whether it may indicate something more threatening.

Congratulations!

Martha

How long do the eggs stay that color?

Well sad news. 7 cats died. I checked on them every hr, and this last time a few were black, in some kind of liquid n stiff. = /

These are the ones I took from the tropical milkweed

Sorry to hear your sad news. Where did you get the host?

Thanks...
I forget where I got the tropical mw from.I know I ordered it offline. Maybe joyful butterfly. The last 11 monarchs I raised ate from that same one and they were all fine...maybe the wasp got them? Im still learning about these cool guys..I still have a black egg.

Cghpnd,
I'm so sorry you're having bad luck. Did they seem OK when you found them? Are there more cats still living? If so, make sure you separate the eggs from them. You probably want to have multiple containers that you can move the cats and eggs to as they grow, and clean the alternate containers with bleach each time you switch them out. There are nasty diseases that Monarchs can carry and pass on to one another. Some people who raise Monarchs insist that each cat should be kept in an individual container. It certainly makes sense to keep small groups separate, so if one container is infected, at least the other groups have a chance to avoid infection. And wash hands and milkweed carefully. Again, some people soak their milkweed in a weak bleach solution and then rinse it thoroughly before giving it to their cats, in case sick cats have crawled over the leaves before they collected them. Sorry to be a bit of a wet blanket, but there is obviously something seriously wrong, and I want the rest of your experience to be positive.

Martha

All of the cats seemed fine at first. There are 3 eggs that did not hatch which includes that darker one. I have them seperated between 6 containers. Well they are in the rearing cage made with paint strainers. Its the same cage as on here. That's where I got the instructions :)

Oh so they have to be bleaced often or just when they are done and moved out? I haven't seen a monarch since I found the eggs. But tons of eastern black swallowtails nectaring on the mw.coneflowers and zinnias.

I sure hope the outcome is as best as possible.this is one of the only things that help with my depression.

Spoke too soon. Looks like another cat died. It appeared to have a small peice of leaf in its mouth.so I have read that cats can be kept in brown paper bags? True?

I dont have 31 cages so I was thinking I should separate them?

You could go to a food supply company and buy disposable plastic cups with lids and put 1-2 eggs or cats in each cup. You could get larger plastic containers, like large ice cream buckets, and put 6-10 cats in each. I suggest separating them only so if one container is contaminated and all the cats inside die off, you still have containers and cats with a chance to survive. The greater your number of containers, the greater your chance some will survive, but also the greater your work load.

Martha

I have a lot of empty butter containers that I use for left overs. Maybe 14 of them ...and i can just divide them up between the cages and containers.

I dont mind the extra work for them :) I love to just sit and watch them while I drink coffee. I rather watch them than to go out lol.

I have a lot of empty butter containers that I use for left overs. Maybe 14 of them ...and i can just divide them up between the cages and containers.

I dont mind the extra work for them :) I love to just sit and watch them while I drink coffee. I rather watch them than to go out lol.