It rained all of my birthday weekend, but we desperately needed it, so I didn’t mind. I didn’t care for the chilly temperatures, but 7″ of rain, I will take!

Apparently, I will also take a third brood of Pipevine Swallowtails, whether I asked for and expected them or not because I’ve got them. I was putting up MLB feeders, when I noticed how awful the pipevine looked. It had been dry, and I hadn’t run irrigation because it wasn’t dangerously dry, so I didn’t think much of it…until I saw the real reason.

After the rain stopped, I decided to “just check” the Virginia snakeroot that had just begun to regrow. I eventually found 18 caterpillars. Yesterday, as I was releasing a White-lined Sphinx caterpillar, I made one more check of the snakeroot. Sure enough, I found one last straggler.

Those flutter-guys had better be finished for the year because I have virtually nothing Aristolochia left!

Yesterday, S brought a caterpillar in for me to identify. It was a fat, healthy White-lined Sphinx, and he asked me whether I wanted it. Of course I did, but this one I released because I’m not sure he’s done eating, and this late in the season, he may choose to spend the winter in his sleeping bag. I tried feeding him several different plants, but he wasn’t interested. I wasn’t sure that he wouldn’t be were he not in a plastic container, so I released him by the Kankakee mallow, where he’ll find both mallow (which seemed to be the most interesting to him, though he didn’t eat more than a couple of bites), and soft, loose soil in the event that he’s done for the year and ready to take a nap.