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jblaschke

Fritillary on p. incense

jblaschke
18 years ago

I grabbed this pic of a Gulf Fritillary emerging from its pupa on a fast-growing sucker of my p. incense.
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In the two weeks since I took this shot, we've had close to a dozen caterpillars move on to the pupa stage, and most have emerged as butterflies. I talk a little bit more about it in my blog.

Question: Is p. vitifolia unsuitable for Gulf Fritillary? I ask because the p. incense sucker has been stripped clean by the caterpillars, and I've since noticed chew marks and the occasional poor-looking caterpillar on it. But the damage is pretty minor, and the caterpillars don't seem to last. Also, the original p. incense vine is in full sun, and still doesn't show more than a couple of caterpillars (the sucker was mostly shaded). Do the butterflies/caterpillars prefer shade? Just curious.

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