Ryall, M.E. (29 August 2007). Shell Lake residents raise monarch butterflies. Washburn County Register, p. 32.

Shell Lake residents raise monarch butterflies

By Mary Ellen Ryall

SHELL LAKE - Recently I received a telephone call from Jay Hanson of East Lake Drive. Jay informed me that he and his wife, Alice, raise monarch butterflies on their lakefront property. He stated that their son, Mike, Clifton Park, N.Y., invented a new type of screened wire cage to raise them in. I visited with him one sunny Saturday to learn firsthand how one raises a butterfly from egg, to caterpillar, to chrysalis, and to a fully emerged butterfly. Jay is a man with a passion and his purpose is to help rescue the monarch butterfly. He has shared his enthusiasm with a few neighbors who are also interested in learning how to raise monarch butterflies.

Nestled on a tree stump sat a tall-screened cage. The different stages of the butterfly were visible through the screened walls. It was afternoon. Jay opened the screen door and about five newly emerged monarchs were released and flew away. He told me that normally he takes the cage inside at night when the temperature is unseasonably cold. The cage is heavy. He decided the night before to drape a blanket over it instead. Jay observed something unusual the morning of my visit. Not only were the butterflies not moving, the caterpillars were not eating either. Butterflies can't fly when the temperature falls below 55 degrees F.

Jay acknowledged that he looks for egg-laden milkweed leaves in his meadow or on the beach. He gathers leaves containing monarch eggs. We went inside the house to see his butterfly nursery. A shallow, glass baking dish was set on a table. The nursery contained milkweed leaves, eggs, and a few tiny caterpillars. Jay prefers to stand the milkweed leaves up on end in tall and wide glass jars. The leaves can then be monitored on both sides. Caterpillars are renowned for hiding under leaves. Tiny air holes are punched in plastic wrap that secures the container. Water-moistened paper painstakingly envelops each leaf. Plastic wrap is then fastened around the paper-tipped leaves to secure the moisture within.

According to Jay, monarchs singly lay one egg per leaf or, preferably, per plant. There is a reason for this. Dr. Lincoln Brower, Sweet Briar College, suggests that the monarch caterpillar is cannibalistic and will eat other monarch eggs. Jay observed that when tiny caterpillars emerge out of the egg, they eat a tiny circle around where the egg was once lodged. After the tiny caterpillar is a few days old and able to be moved, Jay hand carries it from nursery to cage. Within the cage itself are recycled plastic coffee containers that hold water. Holes are punched in the container lids and milkweed leaves are inserted into the containers. This method of keeping milkweed leaves moist works effectively. We gazed at caterpillars in the famous J position. I learned that the caterpillar's antennae drooped when the caterpillar is ready to turn into a chrysalis. As we stood there mesmerized, a car pulled into the driveway and Alice Hanson got out. She smiled and said, "We have a lot of fun raising monarch butterflies."