Remove the leaf and put it in a container that is fairly airtight until the egg hatches. This will keep the leaf from wilting too much. Even a plastic baggy will work until the egg/eggs hatch.

Sandy

Sandy is right. And if you don't have milkweed growing at home,you can cut individual leaves, or large parts of plants, and put them in plastic bags in the fridge with a heavily dampened paper towel. The leaves stay fresh for many days, and you can take out what you need and put the rest away for later. When the cats are very small, I dry the leaves off pretty carefully to prevent drowning them. I also carefully rinse each leaf to remove dust or small predators. Some even soak the leaves in diluted bleach to kill possible viruses and bacteria, and then rinse again very thoroughly.

Martha

Thanks for the advice. Of course, I will never be able to find them again when I go back. I thought that two eggs was pretty pathetic. I have seen exactly one monarch so far all summer. My husband saw two more at another park. They used to be routine visitors to our garden. It makes me very sad. Thank goodness, we still have plenty of tiger swallowtails and black swallowtails. I have only started planting for butterflies this year, so I am hoping that things will get better over time.
Liz

I just ran into a coworker who says she has milkweed in her yard and has seen Monarch Butterfkies around. So, I'll need to visit her house to it and prowl for eggs and cats. Wish me luck.

Martha

Indeed. Wish you well!

I cut the leaf and stick the end in an Oasis wet floral block and cover c a jar. When the eggs turn dark, I add fresh foliage for the newly hatching cats. As they gravitate toward the fresher leaves, I remove the original older leaves. I repeat this process every 2-3 days until they reach their maximum size. Then I release in a sheltered place in the garden where they pupate.