The Nature Photography Thread

[kibakiba]

Well, they look exactly like them, to a T.

[d_virginiana]

Could they be Viceroys? We have both those and monarchs around here, but I think Viceroys can be found in the Pacific Northwest too. They're only a tiny bit smaller than Monarchs, and they're almost impossible to tell apart. I guess you could always eat one and find out, since they're not poisonous

[kibakiba]

I guess it could be. I've never seen a viceroy caterpillar, though... But I have seen a monarch caterpillar here before. Or, are there any other caterpillars that look like a monarch caterpillar that would be in the PNW?

[d_virginiana]

Hm.. idk about caterpillars. I've never seen a caterpillar of either type around my house, even though there used to be hundreds of monarchs around because we had a giant bed of milkweed right behind our house. To be fair, I'm a bit afraid of caterpillars, so I didn't actually go LOOKING for them.

[kibakiba]

We had a really weird caterpillar in my house once, when I lived in Everett.It was like a big green cocoon sort of... and when I poked it, two brown horns came out of its head. A very stinky defense mechanism.

[d_virginiana]

That sounds terrifying. I got stung a couple times by the poisonous ones as a kid, had some really bad reactions to it, and now just avoid all of them like the plague.

[kibakiba]

It wasn't scary, it was a swallowtail larva I guess. They use that just to scare the predators. I guess it works on you.

[ConcinusMan]

I guess it could be. I've never seen a viceroy caterpillar, though...

Looks like bird poop and only feeds on trees. Willows, poplar, and cottonwood to be exact. Not something you're going to just stumble onto unless you spend a lot time up in those specific trees looking for bird poop. I've only seen a swallowtail caterpillar once or twice. Not because they aren't around but because they're high up in trees and rarely fall.

Viceroy's are not commonly encountered in WA and according to range maps, only the extreme SE corner of the state. Still, it's more likely you saw one of those instead of a monarch.

The milkweed plants that monarch larvae require are rarely found in WA. They're here, just extremely hard to find and definitely not widespread. The growing season is just too cool and short. It's usually found in the eastern deserts too.

[guidofatherof5]

My Gabby found the smallest monarch caterpillar I've ever seen.
The larger one she's been raising for a week now. The younger one can't be more then a couple days old.
Sweet little bugs.

[katach]

Awwww!