The tall patch of common milkweed in my backyard may be just a bit unusual, since this is a plant more often seen along roadsides or in open fields. I decided to plant milkweed many years ago so that I might pick the leaves and use their poisonous white sap to treat a pesky wart. Native Americans apparently used the plant in this same fashion and I can attest to its effectiveness. Look, mom, no warts!
Certain chemicals in the milkweed’s sap are toxic to many creatures, but not monarch butterfly caterpillars. In fact, milkweed leaves are the only thing they eat! Just before dinner yesterday evening, I watched a female monarch flit from one milkweed leaf to another, depositing a tiny, whitish-yellow egg on the undersurface of each. The eggs will hatch a few days from now, each one yielding a tiny worm-like larva. Almost immediately the new creature will begin munching the leaf on which it was born. Gaping holes lined with milky sap are telltale signs of the caterpillar’s meals.
Milkweed plants aren’t the only ones that butterfly larvae find tasty. As you walk around your yard, take some time to examine the leaves of different plants, shrubs and trees. Check for evidence of hungry insects and maybe you’ll meet some caterpillar neighbors.
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