A DC Birding Blog: Milkweed Menagerie at Rutgers Gardens


Monarch butterfly
Photo credit: A DC Birding Blog

By John Beetham, A DC Birding Blog: "When I see a stand of milkweed plants, I always stop to see what insects might be using them. When I stopped at a group of Common Milkweed plants (Asclepias syriaca) at Rutgers Gardens, I found the first Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) that I have seen this summer. I only saw a couple adults, but I expect there will be more soon. Monarch caterpillars are among the few insects able to eat the leaves of milkweed plants; the toxins in the leaves makes the adults distasteful and gives them their bright orange color."
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Posted by WILDNEWJERSEY at 7/14/2010 10:00 AM
Categories: Invertebrates
Tags: catepillar milkweed plants rutgers gardens monarch butterfly
 

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