February 10th, 2007
feeding a butterfly
In the comments to my earlier post from today, Ruth asked about feeding the Black Swallowtail butterfly that eclosed yesterday. I took these photos this evening to illustrate how to feed a butterfly.
I’m feeding this butterfly using the method shown on the Journey North page. I mixed up a half teaspoon of sugar with 2 teaspoons of water, stirring it until well dissolved. I poured this mixture into a little saucer, then took a small piece of Kleenex and put it into the dish to get it saturated. Then I placed the butterfly on the Kleenex, unrolling its proboscis (the feeding mouthpart) using the straightened end of a paperclip. Once the proboscis was extended and touching the liquid around the Kleenex, the butterfly began to feed. In the pair of photos below, you can see the proboscis rolled up in its non-feeding position (left), and in the feeding position (right) – click on all photos to see larger view.
After the butterfly seemed to be finished feeding, I dipped its feet in some lukewarm water in a little saucer to clean the sugar off, then set it on a dry Kleenex to walk around, and then I released it.
Tags: Black Swallowtail, Papilio polyxenes, feeding butterfly