Nice shot!!

Nice picture, Sherry! I've always thought that's so neat how they change color depending on what they're eating, plant or flower. I think they're pretty caterpillars.
Cathy

Really nice shot Sherry! I love the Cloudless Sulphurs, and they are laying here too right now. They choose the Sicklepod Senna in my yard even though I do have other options available. I love the cats, and it's especially cool to get a yellow one I think! :o)
Angie

Your yellow cat looks 'yellower' than mine do, Angie -

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All sulphurs just LOVE sicklepod cassia! I planted some years ago in my garden and watered and fertilized them. They grew to about 6'X5' in size, much bigger than the roadside 'weeds' I see here. One day I'm going to do it again!

Sherry

Gosh Sherry, that is too odd. In my yard, I have never seen any Cloudless Sulphur cat with those striped bars that yours has. Do you always see those horizontal bars on your Cloudless cats? I have enough Sicklepod Senna seed to cover the whole Southeast with the stuff. If you need seed for that one, I am your go to person! :o)
Angie

Thanks, Angie, but I can walk down the road and get enough sicklepod seeds to cover my part of the Southeast. I've also got some little volunteers on my property, and one is hosting what I think are little yellows now. It's a great host plant, though it is a pest to farmers and ranchers.

All my yellow cloudless sulphurs have the blue lines. I was surprised when I saw yours, because I've never seen any without them! :)

Sherry

Sherry, I sure would love it if an expert could tell us why yours have stripes and mine don't. Would be interesting to know the why of it. I have never had one with stripes, green or yellow.
Angie

Actually, Angie, when all my cloudless sulphur cats are in their early instars, they're solid yellow. As they go into the later instars, if they're eating all or mostly leaves, they'll be green, but if they're eating all flowers, they'll be yellow with the blue stripes. It looks like the one in your picture is late instar, though - I've never had a late instar CS cat that looked like that.

I agree, we need a lepidopterist? (if there's a such specialty among entomologists) to tell us how this happens.

Sherry