It could have been a praying mantis - they lie in wait on nectar plants for non-suspecting butterflies, but I don't know how they go about eating them, since I rescued the one I found in the clutches of a PM.

You're describing a weird situation. I guess it's most likely some type of bird eating them. I've seen birds, specifically cardinals, take crickets and grasshoppers, and discard the legs and hard shell, leaving only the inner body, then take this to the nest. But I've lived in the country for 17 years, and I've never seen wings scattered around, so I know my local birds don't do it.

I have to ask, is there some mentally ill person living nearby?

'So sorry!

Sherry

LOL.....don't make Chessie paranoid Miss Sherry!

I found a "de-winged" monarch in our garden beneath the fennel plants.

The wings were perfectly in tact, but no trace of the body.

Perhaps there is a serial monarch killer on the loose? ;)

I would suspect a raccoon taking advantage of a nocturnal roosting site. They would have the dexterity to tear off the wings and eat the soft body.

Martha

I've seen wings occasionally here and there, but Chessie said there were 'dozens' of wings, CoolButterfly. That still sounds weird to me. A raccoon might very well have done it.

Sherry

I agree with you Sherry. "Dozens" is really odd. I do find an occasional intact single wing in the yard, but I have never seen dozens in one place.
Angie

question Chessie...are you raising them and leaving the new butterflies to dry outdoors?

How could a predator catch that many butterflies otherwise?

Sorry Sherry, I missed the 'dozens' part before :)

I have to say I have many more then dozens of live butterflies flitting around during the day. I must say there is a bumper crop this year. They breed like crazy in a wild cherry tree that boarders my property and is about 40 feet from my butterfly garden.
Although I have seen no evidence of a raccoon, I wouldn't doubt that there is one in the area as I have woods at the very back of my property.
I have 4 butterfly bushes around the property. I checked and the wings are only in the garden and around the one butterfly bush nearest the garden.

Guys, I had the same problem! 4 pieces of wings. It looked like they all went to the same butterfly and it was 4 sections of 2 wings. I was heartbroken to find these. It said online that lizards, frogs and other reptiles eat butterflies bodies because the wings have no nutritional value.

My guess would be lizards of some type that live in the butterfly bush. Suphur (yellow) Tiger and Eastern Black Swallowtails do not have a nasty taste that discourages predators from eating them, like Monarchs or Pipevine Swallowtails. I've seen lizards grab Sulphurs before. Birds will eat those butterflies, but since they were around the same bush I doubt it was birds.