Monarchs and milkweed

Journey North map (4/10/11)

I was delighted to watch two monarchs flying around our front meadow garden at home this afternoon.

It surprised me, even though I knew they'd all left Mexico and were streaming up through the Central U.S., thanks to email reports from Journey North, a great citizen science/classroom participation site.  Check out the map above.

One female was diligently seeking out the common milkweed plants that are abundant in the front meadow, and apparently laying eggs (although I didn't actually find any - I was distracted by fetching my camera).

Common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca)

 Monarch investigating young milkweed shoot

She (I think) was quite thorough in investigating the young shoots  -- certainly she exhibited ovipositing behavior!

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Common milkweed and bee balm

Common milkweed, Asclepias syriaca, is a robust plant, spreading by rhizomes (underground stems). But it's a favored host plant for monarch butterfly caterpillars, which is recommendation enough for me. It's just started to flower, and is being visited by lots of flower visitors, just like its relative, Asclepias tuberosa (butterfly weed). I transplanted it into our meadow thanks to my butterfly gardening friends, and it's flourishing.

The bee balm doesn't much like the ongoing drought, but is a tough customer nevertheless. Bumblebees were active visitors close to dusk.

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