Monarch Butterfly – A Final Update

in #nature7 years ago

LIFE IS SHORT .......


especially for a butterfly who could not fly!


... yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. James 4:14 English Standard Version (ESV)


On several occasions I thought she was going to be able to fly in spite of her crumpled wings. On Sunday she had been fluttering her wings quite a bit, so I brought her outside and placed her on a flower while I sat close by and watched that none of the anoles hanging around would take the opportunity to grab her. She didn't fly, but did seem to enjoy the sunlight and the flowers. I had kept a pot of flowers n her tent, but she had been unable to climb up to them, so instead I picked a small bouquet and placed it in a pill bottle. Her interest was more in fruit and the sugary water and juice I provided – because it was likely easier for her to feed from it.


An afternoon in the sun (Take note of her wavy wings. They should have been straight.)
butterfly on flower.jpg
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved.
Click on the image to view full screen!

CameraCanon EOS 5D Mark II
LensEF100mm f/2.8 Macro USM
Exposure1/60 sec; f/5.6; ISO 800
Post-processingAdobe Photoshop® CC 2017, Adobe Camera Raw

Finally on Valentine's Day she gave up the fight. When we found her in the morning we thought she had already gone. Her wings were spread and she looked very peaceful resting on the Gatorade/sugar syrup/soy sauce soaked cotton balls in the upturned bottle lid. I went to get my camera to take some last pictures of her, but when I looked through the macro lens I was surprised to see her proboscis stuck into the cotton ball and her little mouth moving! She did not move from her spot on the edge of the bottle cap all day though, and was unable to climb onto our fingers as she had been doing. By evening she was truly gone. She had lived a short 5 days as a butterfly!


Resting on her feeding station
butterfly wings open.jpg
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved.
Click on the image to view full screen!

CameraCanon EOS 5D Mark II
LensEF100mm f/2.8 Macro USM
Exposure1/160 sec; f/7.1; ISO 1600
Post-processingAdobe Photoshop® CC 2017, Adobe Camera Raw

Feeding for the last time
butterfly feeding cotton ball.jpg
Image ©Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved.
Click on the image to view full screen!

CameraCanon EOS 5D Mark II
LensEF100mm f/2.8 Macro USM
Exposure1/125 sec; f/13; ISO 1600
Post-processingAdobe Photoshop® CC 2017, Adobe Camera Raw

For those who have not been following, you can read my previous posts with the links provided following this, but here is a short recap. On January 9, I found a Monarch caterpillar in my yard – an unusual thing, because the last of the Monarchs should have migrated to Mexico in the fall! I placed her in a butterfly tent on our outdoors screened patio with some milkweed for her to feed on. Three days later on January 12 she formed a chrysalis. Because we've had a rather cold winter with some below freezing nights here in North Florida, I brought her indoors when temperatures were in the fifties or below. The chrysalis stage is normally 10 days to two weeks, but because of the cooler temperatures, she remained in that stage for four weeks. She emerged from the chrysalis overnight on February 10, but had fallen to the floor of the tent where she was unable to stand and stretch her wings. I'm not sure if her wings were deformed in the chrysalis, or if they just hardened before she could get them stretched, but either way she was unable to fly, but just walked around her butterfly tent.



You can read the full account of the monarch butterfly in these posts:
A monarch Caterpillar In winter
Monarch Butterfly Chrysalis
Monarch Butterfly
Monarch Butterfly Surprising Update



Thanks for taking the time to read this! I appreciate it. Please check out my photography-101 account here and Follow for photography tips and tutorials if you wish.

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It is very dramatic.. We all know that butterflies have a short lifetime but this post like added us to her poor life story..

I guess it was inevitable that she wouldn't live out her couple of weeks, but I had hoped. 😞

very beautiful photos
I think you must be a great photographer
I always wait for your work but if you take some pictures from different angles would be amazing again @dmcamera

Thanks. I appreciate your stopping by.

I can’t believe how saddened I am about this. I’m sure there’s a lesson here about life. Thanks for giving her 5 pleasant and sweet days.

I know. I became attached to her too. 😥

That was a really interesting story from beginning to end and your photographs were beautiful.

It seems so sad that she died from crumpled wings. I think they look really pretty.

This has been one of my favourite stories on Steemit so far. Thanks for telling it so wonderfully.

Thanks so much for following it. I’m sorry it did not have a happier ending. 😥

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Beautiful shots ... the one with the flower is particularly outstanding.

Thanks! 🙂

Great story and shots... Thanks for sharing it...

Thanks, and you are welcome!

"He won't break a bruised reed. And he won't put out a smoldering wick, until he leads justice to victory." You acted in the love of our Creator. She lived as a butterfly. She was victorious and your love made it possible. Peace friend.

Aw, thanks for your kind words. With hindsight, she may have not been able to fly in the wild anyway, as they can’t fly when the temperature is around 50 or less. So, she would likely have been eaten by an anole or something. At least she had a peaceful and warm short life.

Sweet story. :) Well done!

Thanks again!

Awww poor thing. I think it could be that they hardened before thy fully opened. Still pretty!
So nice you manage to take shots of her.

Yes, I think so. That part was so disappointing, but then it was up to me to take care of her for a while.

What an amazing story... really puller at my heart strings! And kudos to you for giving her such a pleasant home while you could! RIP beautiful butterfly! <3

Thanks! I buried her by the milkweed plant where she had lived as a caterpillar.

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