After finding the Milkweed Caterpillar yesterday, this morning I went looking for another on the milkweed growing in the hosta patch outside the farmhouse.
I easily found one that had already made a half-moon from one of the leaves. Then, on the milkweed plant right next to that one, I saw a Monarch Caterpillar, about a quarter of an inch long. It’s still there this afternoon but I haven’t seen any evidence that it is eating the leaf.
Is it possible that it’s so small I can’t see the damage it has done? I don’t know, but I’ll check on it again in the morning.
This is interesting. I haven’t seen a single Monarch butterfly this year but this evening Grant found a caterpillar a bit bigger than yours. They don’t seem to eat nearly as voraciously as the Milkweed caterpillars but then those guys arrive by the hundreds. I have seen them strip a plant in hours. Lots of things seem different this year.
That little one is gone and I didn’t see it eat anything Carolyn. I’ll have to see if I can find anymore. I’ve seen only one monach this year so far. But the Milkweed Caterpillers are as you say everywhere!