Caterpillar Food
How To Find The Proper Caterpillar Food For Your Little Friends
Caterpillar food will vary greatly depending on the species which you are attempting to feed or raise. For those who have decided to capture wild specimens and raise them for study and for hobby, the caterpillar food choice will much easier to determine. You will most likely need to keep a fresh supply of the plant on which you found the little guy, as he rarely travels from the food source on which he was laid as an egg. If his mother wanted him to eat that, then it must be in his best interest.
To keep a fresh supply of the food that your creature needs, you must remember that placing cups or jars full of water, or even containing water at all, will be a hazard to the caterpillar. He cannot swim, and will easily drown should he fall into standing water. A great idea for keeping fresh caterpillar food in his area is to buy a flower vile from your local florist. They should be cheap, and they will seal the moisture away from your prized larvae and around the stem of the vegetation where it belongs. Remember also that adult butterfly food is not always the same as caterpillar food, as many adults feed merely on nectar. The monarch butterfly feeds strictly on the milkweed plant throughout his entire life, but he is a rare exception.
Don’t be surprised, should you decide to raise caterpillars found in the wild, if your efforts produce a moth or two. This can be just as rewarding, though you may never see them again after their release. Caterpillar food must be made available at all times, as most species will feed non stop to reach their weight and nutritional requirements prior to forming a chrysalis. This may mean finding new, leafy branches or stems every day, as they will not feed on dried or wilted foliage. If you choose to raise caterpillars that were hatched in captivity, your breeder or butterfly expert will have a more detailed knowledge base about all of the life cycles and needs of your critters.
If your caterpillar food will not suffice for the adult form of the insect, you will certainly need to release it once its wings have fully developed and it can fend for itself. This is most often the case, but some do try to raise and breed specific types of butterflies in captivity. You must know exactly what these creatures need for optimum health and survival, or their lives could fall to malnourishment. It seems a much more rewarding experience for all involved to watch them develop and then fly away free.