ecology

Wildlife at QBG

The highlight of my day is finding cool insects and other critters. Lately there’s been an explosion of caterpillars and I’ve been getting quite distracted by them. The way they eat is so organized and I love watching the way they move.

  • Look at those cute feet!
  • Black Swallowtail caterpillar
  • Monarch caterpillar

Here are some random facts for my own future reference:

Host plants for Monarch Caterpillar : Milkweeds

Host plants for Black Swallowtail Caterpillar: Plants in the Carrot Family.

I want to try using Zizia aurea someday since it is a native plant in the carrot family and feeds short tongued insects in the spring. Plus, I don’t see it often! I’ve only seen it in Prairie Moon and Prairie Nursery.

  • Twice Stabbed Stinkbug
  • At a brief glance, I thought this was a giant slug
  • Crab spider!
  • Ladybeetle and Amsonia
  • Skipper (?) and Echinacea
  • I noticed a black swallowtail butterfly fluttering around this plant and was surprised that my eyes were able to spot this egg!
  • This dragonfly was not scared at all!
  • Can you see the two pray mantises?
  • Baby northern brown snake (?)

Sometimes I wish I could show all the visitors the insects and animals I see every week! Luckily I was able show a girl and her mom a bunch of caterpillars chowing down. Another happy moment was when another girl came up to me and proudly said, “This is not just a botanical garden, it’s a butterfly garden!”. It made me feel extra motivated to garden design with ecology and community in mind.