Common Monarch Ailments 101

8/7/2018

Many people have been asking, “What's wrong with my Monarch caterpillar/egg/chrysalis?”

This is a list of the MOST common problems that the Monarch Rearer may encounter and how you can either avoid your Monarch from being infected or avoid the infection from spreading to your other caterpillars. Hopefully these tips and indicators can help you raise healthier Monarchs in the future!

Warning: Some photos may seem graphic or unpleasant.

UPDATE: Flea and tick treatment along with several cleaning products in your home can be deadly to Monarchs caterpillars.

We recently received this tip from one of our readers.
Any flea or tick prevention given to cats or dogs, both topically applied and orally administered, are toxic to Monarch larvae.
Allowing your treated cat or dog to rub against your Monarch's cage can cause harm or death to the caterpillars inside. Petting your animal after treatment and then gathering milkweed leaves or touching anything in your Monarch's cage can harm your caterpillars.
Also, be aware of any potentially toxic cleaning products you may be using around your caterpillar cage such as Febreeze, other air fresheners, carpet cleaners, Windex, or Lysol. Remember that these are very delicate creatures and even small doses of chemicals can be fatal.

Prevention: Whenever interacting with your Monarch caterpillars make sure you washed your hands prior and/or wear gloves to be sure that your hands are free of any chemicals. Try to use natural cleaning products inside the room your caterpillars are living.

Black Death

What is Black Death?
As the name suggests, this is a fatal and very unpleasant ailment for the Monarch. Black Death is a general yet appropriate term used to describe the effects of two different infections. Pseudomonas is a bacteria that thrives in moist environments and Nuclear polyhedrosis virus (NPV) is a virus.

How to tell if your Monarch has Black Death:
Your caterpillar may be fine one day and the next start to become lethargic, start to deflate, refuse to eat and start to turn a darker color. Sometimes their chrysalises will turn dark brown or they pupate and then liquefy into a black goo. This can be a traumatic experience for the Monarch Rearer but once your caterpillar has contracted Black Death, it is nearly impossible to save them and the best thing to do is remove it immediately from the cage and disinfect anything it may have touched in order to prevent it from spreading to other caterpilalrs.

Note: NPV causes the caterpillar to climb to a high spot, hang in an l or inverted V shape, and die. The caterpillar then liquefies inside and when the skin of the caterpillars splits open, the black goo will send millions of virus particles on its surroundings. The smell is very pungent. If a caterpillar lies at the bottom of a rearing container (instead of crawling higher in the container) and dies either firm or mushy, it is not infected with NPV.

How to prevent Black Death

The Pseudomonas bacteria like moist, warm environments so try to keep your butterfly cage dry, well-ventilated and out of direct sunlight.
Clean the frass (butterfly poop) everyday and disinfect the tray before putting it back in the cage.
Gently rinse and dry milkweed before putting into your cage.
If you see any signs of an unhealthy caterpillars or chrysallises (read indicators above), isolate it from the other caterpillars.

O.E. (Ophryocystis elektroscirrha)

What is OE?
OE is a protozoan parasite that is spread through microscopic spores coming off the wings and bodies of adult butterflies. These spores are packed in between scales on the Monarch's body and when it lays eggs, often attaches to the egg shell. Because OE is a parasite, it relies on a living host and will generally not kill Monarchs but will lead to weakness, disfigurement, and lethargy. Eventually it may die from sheer exhaustion.

How to tell if your Monarch has OE:
You won't be able to tell if a Monarch has OE until it's in the pupal or adult stage. Infected chrysalises won’t have a uniform green color. You can check your chrysalis closely to make sure it's dark spots are mirrored on both sides. Heavily infected Monarchs may not emerge or if they do they may be deformed or too weak to hold on.

How to prevent OE:

Gentry rinse off milkweed with water before giving it to your caterpillars
Clean out frass and disinfect the cage everyday
In warmer regions where tropical milkweed grows all year, cut plants back to 6″ twice a year so fresh healthy foliage can emerge.

Tachinid Flies

What are Tachinid Flies?
Tachinid flies can be difficult to differentiate from other flies in your garden. However, if you look closely, you will see that they are hairy and have huge red eyes.

How tell if your Monarch was infected by a Tachinid Fly:
This is one of the easiest Monarch infections to identify. They lay eggs on monarch caterpillars and once hatched, the maggots will bore into the caterpillar and feed on them while they are still living. You can generally tell if your caterpillar has been infected if it suddenly gets much skinnier and will sometimes die while attempting to form it’s chrysalis. These flies also lay eggs inside chrysalises. After it’s host has died, the maggots will emerge, leaving tell-tale white strands of silk hanging from the caterpillar or chrysalis.

How to prevent Tachinid Flies:

Closely inspect monarch caterpillars before bringing them inside and choose ones that are second Instar or even smaller.
Keep a close eye on your caterpillars and eggs

Pesticide Poisoning

Sadly, it occurs quite often where nurseries treat their milkweed with pesticides or roadsides/fields are sprayed where you collected milkweed/caterpillars unknowingly.

How to tell if your Monarch has come into contact with Tainted Milkweed:
If your caterpillar has ingested pesticides it will often expel green vomit.

How to avoid this from happening:

If you notice your caterpillar vomit, gently rinse off the caterpillar under water and put it on a different (untreated) milkweed plant immediately.
Plant a large amount of milkweed in your garden so you don’t have to buy milkweed elsewhere
If you have to buy milkweed from a nursery, ask if they have been treated with ANY pesticides
If there isn’t a local provider close to you, check online for untreated milkweed seeds .
Proceed with caution even when companies list their products as safe for beneficial insects. Even organic products can be unsafe for caterpillars such as Neem Oil and Diatomaceous Earth

Trichogramma Wasps

What are Trichogramma Wasps?
They are tiny parasitic wasps that inject a single egg into the eggs of the pest. After consuming the contents of its host egg, a new adult wasp will emerge within 10 days.

How to tell if your Monarch has come into contact with Trichogramma Wasps:
If your egg turns completely dark keep an eye on it for the next couple of days to make sure a Monarch doesn’t hatch. If it doesn’t hatch, squeeze the egg inside of the leaf and dispose of the leaf.

How to avoid:

When gathering Monarch eggs, try to get them inside right away

Chalcid Wasps

What are Chalcid Wasps?
This is another tiny, parasitic wasp that waits for the perfect moment to attack your beloved caterpillar. It will approach when the caterpillar is in it’s vulnerable “J” stage and wait for it to form a chrysalis. Then, right afterwards, it lays hundreds of its eggs in the soft chrysalis.

How to tell if your Monarch has been infected by Chalcid Wasps:
Look for small black dots where it appears they have deposited their eggs.

How to avoid:

When gathering Monarch eggs, try to get them inside right away
Use fine mesh enclosures to raise monarchs. Larger holes in laundry baskets will allow these impossibly small wasps access to your monarchs during this most-vulnerable time.
If raising outdoors, do not leave your habitat open for long periods while cleaning and check the cage for flying insects before closing

Anal Prolapse

When this occurs, the caterpillar’s rectum protrudes from its anus, leaving a bright green ball at the end of your caterpillar. It’s not known what causes this, but it’s always fatal to the caterpillar.

Resources

https://monarchbutterflygarden.net/common-monarch-diseases-prevention/
http://butterflyfarms.org/monarch-predators-parasites-and-diseases/
https://monarchjointventure.org/resources/faq/common-monarch-problems
https://butterfly-fun-facts.com/oe-ophryocystis-elektroscirrha-monarch-butterfly/

187 Comments

Renee Larsen

9/15/2018 04:52:46 am

This is the most complete explanation I have seen. Is there a way to share it by e-mail or FB?

Marilyn Rackley

10/2/2018 10:54:11 am

I was trying to find an answer for this lady I met on a Boxer lovers site. She had a pic of a beautiful large Monarch sitting on the nose of her boxer and also in her hand and she said the butterfly appeared lethargic. She wanted to know why. I had created a Habitat for Monarchs some time ago and I remembered they can appear very docile but I didn't know why!

dee lee

12/5/2018 09:52:10 pm

please remember that any flea prevention given to cats&dogs -- topically applied or orally administered -- can affect these delicate creatures. the chemicals are effective through the pet's skin & fur, so even when petting them, care must be made to wash hands before handling cats or butterflies.

Rebecca

6/19/2019 08:36:26 am

Hello Marilyn!
Thank you for your question. Do you know if her Monarch was freshly emerged from the chrysalis? For about 24 hours after emerging from their chrysalis, the Monarch will appear lethargic. It is important not to touch their wings at this stage because they are still drying and can be damaged. Thank you for reading!

Rachel

8/27/2019 12:39:45 pm

Did anyone ever get an answer? I just found a large monarch lying somewhat on its side in our lawn. I thought it was dead. I used a small stick to put under his legs and belly and it moved. Barely at all, but loved. I lifted it up and put it on a table and it’s wings are trembling almost like they’re in a strong breeze. There is no damage at all to its wings. It will not fly though. It has been sitting there for hours. I can’t find anything damaged or wrong with it but it won’t fly and it’s wings just shake like a ton of wind is blowing on it. Any advice?

6/19/2019 08:34:39 am

Hello Renee!
Thank you for reading. You can share this blog by copy and pasting the link to Facebook. We will try to add a Facebook share button in the future to make it easier.

Jaime

9/3/2019 09:24:45 pm

Hi Rachel sounds like the butterfly you found must have just emerged and probably had fallen before she was completely dry, that might explain the movement of her wings. Butterflies need their wings dry and their muscles warm before they can take flight.

nan mazzuco

9/11/2020 04:07:56 am

It is September and I have 3 chrysalis that turned black 15 days after forming yet are still black for 34 days later. I have been raising monarchs for 3 years and only saw this happen once before (last year).
What gives? Can anyone shed some light on this. I'm assuming they have aborted at this point.

Jan

9/27/2018 07:29:04 am

Ive been watching a chrysalis for 2 weeks. It appears darker and I can see lines from the pattern of the wings. The dot attaching the chrysalis to the now dead milkweed leaf has been very dark for a week. Is it ok? The temps have been fluctuating from 40s to 60s. Should I take it inside and surround it with goldenrod and flowers frm the garden?

6/19/2019 08:40:09 am

Hello Jan,
Thank you for your question! The Monarch will generally be in the pupae (chrysalis) stage for 9-14 days. The chrysalis will turn clear right before it emerges and you will be able to see the wings inside. Hopefully this helps!

Iris Marie Bloom link

10/25/2019 08:52:00 am

Hi, just so you know, I've had one Monarch emerge this year after being in chrysalis for 24 days! I also know Maraleen Manos Jones had one for 30 days in chrysalis. Both emerged just fine and flew away after drying wings, in my case, for a full days since it was cloudy and cold out. When the sun came out on her second day of life, and temperature rose to 65, we brought her out into the sun on a flower, she nectared a bit on my Butterfly Bush, then flew away! (Heading south). She was able to grip, nectar, move and fly just fine. My theory is that as the nights get colder, they develop more slowly inside the chrysalis. Same with J. I had one mature big 5th instar cat hang in his J for 3 days before he made his chrysalis! Wow. And the chrysalis is developing just fine.

COLINDA RICE

9/30/2020 05:41:08 am

I have have several chrysalis in an outside screen enclosure take over 20 days to emerge, some come out fine and some not so good. I think that the very cold temps we experienced at the beginning of september has caused the delay in the monarch development, but the extended time taken in chrysalis has weekend some of them to the point of not being able to emerge or hold on to the shell to expand there wings. I also had the Chalcid Wasps(first time I 've seen those) infecting some. Hard to tell at this point which chrysalises are going to emerge properly and they are running out of time and weather!

RMS

10/4/2018 01:36:01 pm

Yesterday I went over to one of my butterfly bushes in my backyard to count monarchs. I saw one that seemed to have green legs but when I looked closer it was a preying mantis leg. The mantis had the monarch in its grasp. I took the mantis off the bush, but it was too late and had ripped the head off the monarch.

Today a new monarch emerged from its chrysalis. It was fine and was flirting about on a different butterfly bush in my front (not back) yard. I just went outside and found it dead on the butterfly bush. I think it still has its head, but the head is sort of deflated oe collapsed. I looked all around and inside the butterfly bush and could not find a mantis.

I noticed some tiny black spots on the deck railing under the area where the butterfly was found. They look slightly bigger than pepper flakes and are perfectly round. This makes me wonder — did a mantis kill yesterday’s butterfly or was it already dead and the mantis took advantage of an opportunity to eat it?

This is my first year with monarchs. I planted common and swamp milkweed last year and only noticed my first chrysalis about a month ago. Since then I’ve had 5 monarchs hatch. I have 3 more chrysalides and they seem somewhat small and haven’t changed color yet.

Lindsey

7/19/2019 12:49:57 pm

A mantis will only eat food that moves.

Donna-Jo Grove

6/6/2020 03:51:08 pm

I have a monarch caterpillar that has climb to the top of the cage I made to protect them. He has wandered since
9:00 this morning. It is now 6:00
I notice now he has stopped moving and is moving his head back and forth. Can you tell me what is going on? No will pad yet

6/10/2020 07:40:56 pm

It's probably going to molt?

9/3/2019 09:31:22 pm

The crysalides will stay on this stage from 10 to 14 days before they turn dark and emerge, they're also like us of different sizes.Hope this helps

LeeLee

6/6/2020 07:13:15 pm

Donna Jo....absolutely normal. They stop after several hours & when moving head back & forth is when they are creating silk pad.

Linda Vincent

10/12/2018 12:11:06 pm

I have a healthy black monarch, and four that are almost all black, very large eating good. Should I move them to ther own cage. They don’t get sun or slot of light.

6/19/2019 08:25:41 am

If there is a chance of an infected Monarch cat, I would always isolate them to keep an eye on them and to avoid spreading anything to other cats. Thank you for your question!

9/3/2019 09:34:09 pm

Caterpillars as well as crysalides should be kept away from direct sunlight.

12/5/2018 09:55:48 pm

I have one cat 3rd instar developed blackened skin 5 days ago, yet eats & poops voraciously, very active, getting big & fat....but hasn't molted in over a week. none of other cats have the black skin nor molting cessation. Any advice?

Kristy D

5/16/2019 12:37:41 pm

Mine turn a dark almost black before the go up to their J and chrysalis.

6/19/2019 08:24:34 am

It's possible that your cat may be infected. I would isolate it to a container by itself so that you can keep an eye on it and so that it doesn't infect any other cats you may be rearing. Best of luck!

Candace Glasgow

4/11/2019 05:09:12 am

My caterpillar started making its chrysalis two days ago. There's a small green cap of the chrysalis that formed at the bottom, but nothing has happened since. I'm trying to figure out how long this stage lasts or if the caterpillar has died. :(

6/19/2019 08:22:28 am

Hello Candace!
Thank you for your question. Usually the caterpillar will form it's chrysalis in 24-36 hours after getting into the 'J' position. Often this will happen at night or in early morning. If it has not formed a complete chrysalis by then, it is very likely that it has been infected with some sort of pest or disease. What you can do is take a piece of thread or floss to gently remove the silk pad from its cage and isolate it so that you can keep an eye on it and so that it doesn't infect other cats you may be raising. Good luck and please keep us updated!

Karen

7/27/2020 08:54:24 pm

Hi Rebecca
I have a Cat that was in the J position for about 2-3 days then today I noticed him on the bottom of the cage crawling around frantically...he doesn't seem to have any silk and is very lethargic...please help.

Karen link

5/20/2019 04:29:28 pm

What a fabulous site, thank you for all of the information that you share with all of your fellow Monarch lovers. I have been raising Monarchs for years and this is the first time that I came across this situation. I have a chrysalis that is pink, apricot on color. The cat seemed perfectly healthy and robust, became a a normal gorgeous green chrysalis and within a few hours turned pink, apricot in color. The chrysalis is not dry or wrinkled like Black Death not does it have any dark spots. None of my other chrysalis are this color or have any other diseases. Would you happen to know what is/has happened to this chrysalis? I took photos to give you an idea of the color that I’m talking about. Thank you again for all of your help! I’m going to try to send a photo for you to see.

Jackee Rettler

7/17/2020 12:56:06 pm

In reply to the person about the pink or apricot colored chrysalis. I discovered that I had Tropical Queen butterflies mixed in with my Monarchs this year. They look exactly like a Monarch on the outside of the wings but are a darker color and their body matches the inside of the wing color. They also eat milkweed, but their chrysalis can be pink!
The caterpillars have similar coloring to the monarchs, but they have an extra set of black spikes sticking up and the coloring is brighter as they mature.

5/20/2019 04:51:06 pm

https://i.imgur.com/GewBIy9.jpg

Here is the link to the picture. Place it in the address bar in your browser to see it.

6/19/2019 08:17:59 am

Hi Karen,
Thank you so much for reading! I'm sorry to hear about your caterpillar. My best guess is that it is a bacterial disease similar to Black Death called Pseudomonas. The best thing you can do at this point is to remove any other cats you may have in the cage and disinfect the cage thoroughly to prevent it from spreading to any other cats. Best of luck!

Louise Bianco

6/18/2019 08:58:23 am

My monarch caterpillar began its chrysallis formation, but has stalled in the J formation. Should I be concerned?

Rebecca Chandler

6/19/2019 08:11:40 am

The Monarch will generally take one full day to form it's chrysalis while in the J stage. I have found that they often form the chrysalis at night or early morning. I would not be concerned yet and give it as much time alone and without interruption as possible. Thank you for your question!

Heather Bednar

6/23/2019 08:28:51 am

so many of my cats die from anal prolapse. It is so sad to watch them eat, look so healthy, go into J position and then it strikes! they appear to lose their strength to hold their heads up in j, then the bright green appears. I euthanize them since it says it is always fatal. Does anyone have an idea what causes it. It it very depressing for this to happen to mostly all of them.

Hello my name is Denise I have a monarch caterpillar n it's on the outside of the pot 4 2 days n it's just sitting there what's going on

7/27/2020 10:10:13 am

I have a monarch caterpillar on the outside of the pot n it's been there 4 2 days . What's it doing

Denise

7/27/2020 10:51:18 am

My cat has been on the side of the pot for 2 days
N it's still alive . I'm new at this. N I don't know
What it's doing . Help

Marilynn

9/14/2020 04:55:22 pm

I know this is a late answer to your question but I happened across your post while looking for an answer to a question I have. I hope by now the cat you mentioned has formed their chrysalis, and emerged as a healthy butterfly! Don’t worry, they take days sometimes to form their chrysalis’ and stay still for a day or more depending upon the weather and time of year...Good luck!

Antonette

6/30/2019 12:13:34 pm

Hello. I have monarch host plant milkweed species on my patio garden in containers. I have had good success with nature taking it's course and have had lots of butterflies emerge. I have had about 2 rounds of caterpillars making it to butterflies. However all of a sudden my caterpillars are all dieting. I find them at the base of the plants in the dirt. They are either dead or lethargic, They do not appear to be black and I do not use any pesticides. Although the plants are in moist and full sun. So they do meet the conditions of the Pseudomonas bacteria Any trouble shooting ideas or any ways to treat the bacteria if the plants are outside? Thank you

Angela

7/1/2019 08:21:15 am

Thanks for the great information. I’m heartbroken to say our Monarch appears to have been attacked by fly larva. :(. It is fully black in its chrysalis. There are 6 larva in bottom of cage.

Will the Monarch survive? Should we assume it’s dead? We don’t want to give up on it.

Elisabeth link

7/31/2019 11:01:26 pm

It’s definitely dead. Sorry :(

Loretta Silecchia

7/4/2019 10:58:56 am

I am in SC. My cats are going good until they emerge from chrysalis. They are in mesh hamper cages. A few have died in j form but all of my butterflies emerged perfectly formed but can’t hang on. I had one today on the cage floor, I was able to get it to hang on to a twig with one foot and then it just died.It had been able to hang on to puff his wings out but that was it.
So upsetting not sure what to do anymore. I do not even see any monarchs laying eggs. Maybe another type of milkweed doesn’t have the parasite. I have Asclepius curassavia milkweed

Jeri

8/18/2019 10:05:07 pm

This is a bit late, and maybe you found your answer, but when they are weak, cannot hold on and are usually crumpled, they are infected with OE. Disinfect whatever it was in contact with as OE is like glitter and scatters everywhere from the wings. It is highly contagious in the sense it can be on anything an affected butterfly touches or comes near, like milkweed leaves. It is dreaded by us all and I have had a lot of them this year. Hope this helps

Luke

9/1/2020 06:57:29 am

I see this sometimes on the butterflies that emerge from chrysalides that fall to the enclosure floor. For some reason, they have a harder time getting out and climbing up the wall to hang their wings. You only have a limited time to get them to grab onto something. But since they struggle to get out, alot of energy is wasted and they have less strength to hold on.
Sometimes the chrysalis stays attached to the abdomen and I help pull the butterfly out and hang it on the top so it can stretch it's wings.
In my case, you may say it is OE, but it is simply bad luck. I bleach all my plants, leaves and eggs for 10 minutes followed by several water washes. I bleach all my enclosures and tupperwares and then sun dry them for UV treatment. I clean the cages daily.
In addition, sometimes with overcrowding or if another cat starts touching the newly forming chrysalis, you will get irregularities on the outside that make emerging more difficult.

Marian

7/24/2019 12:11:45 pm

Thank you for the helpful information. Although not a common, a first intar cat can be infected by the fly. One of my first instar cats in my yard came down with it. My daughter noticed a suspicious white spot on it's back. I mainly rescue eggs now because Tachnid fly is too present in my yard. 95% of the wild caterpillars are infected. But I decided to collect this cat and watch it. It ate moderately well until 5th instar, but I always noticed that it was smaller than my other caterpillars. When it finally molted to 5th instar, it was about half the size of a normal newly formed 5th instar and a day later tried to J unsuccessfully. It eventually died and I opened it up to discover a couple fly larva inside.

Mary Ap

6/21/2020 01:47:04 am

Regular fruitfly traps (likewlike redvred apples containingtcontaining applefapple cider vinegar) will kill tachinid flies. I place one near every milkweed plant and it helps a lot to get rid of them.

Tera

7/26/2019 01:24:38 pm

Two of my caterpillars look lifeless. They are underneath a luge and hanging on only by half their feet. Their heads are just hanging down. Not in a J. More of an arc. I'm worried that its two of them. Could it be a sickness?

8/20/2019 05:40:21 pm

It sounds like they may be infected. The only thing you can do is to prevent the sickness from spreading to other caterpillars. To do this, you can carefully move the chrysalis with a Q-tip or string to another cage and monitor them closely. In addition, clean the cage thoroughly before adding other caterpillars. Best of luck!

Penny Curtis

7/27/2019 06:52:43 am

I have a monarch caterpillar that has formed u-shape but hasn't formed crystalis..its been about 12 hrs since it attached. Is it ok?

Carla

7/28/2019 03:06:44 pm

Please help. A fifth instar caterpillar was wandering off the milkweed plant, looking for a place to J. It climbed up the side of my house, but then fell onto the rocks below. It was “bleeding”, but the bleeding stopped. However, it seems unable to use its hind prolegs and is dragging itself along with its true legs and first few prolegs. Does it have a chance or should it be euthanized?

Emily

7/29/2019 05:23:32 pm

I have a mesh cage that i keep my cats in. I started with 5 monarch caterpillars. They ferociously ate the large milkweed plant, but only one fed off of the smaller milkweed plant as far as i know. I have one that formed a chrysalis on the wdge of the pan, 3 have disappeared (its kindof the end of the summer for the box and there are plenty of places to escape thanks to rain and wind, or they have made their chrysalises someplace i cant easily see). I see no dead cats anywhere in my enclosure. Today i noticed one writhing around. I have taken him out, rinsed him and placed him in a new place with fresh leaves from one of my wild plants (that i know I didnt treat with anything). It is possible that my plants weren't grown with out pesticides, but none of the others seem to have died and there is no vomit that i have seen. Just writhing. What could it be?

Pat

7/30/2019 11:17:42 am

This is our third year raising monarchs. First year was enormously successful. Second year started to get black chrysalis on most of them. So we removed the old plants and bought new ones this year. Disaster! They are all black and dead. We have dozens of eggs, butterflies visit every day.

Pat Dellios

8/4/2019 04:54:30 pm

Help!

8/20/2019 05:42:40 pm

Did you clean your cage thoroughly before adding new caterpillars? If there was an infection, the infected cats need to be isolated and the cage needs to be cleaned with a diluted solution of bleach if possible. Best of luck!

mari

8/4/2019 01:13:05 pm

The chrysalis form nicely with a good color then all of a sudden when it was about time to become a butterfly it turn black and could not remove itself from the Chrysalis What to do?
If there is a desease how do I get rid of it the leaves of the milkweed have black spot and then it urn yellow and dies Are they connected?

8/20/2019 05:45:05 pm

Did the chrysalis turn black or clear? Before a butterfly emerges the chrysalis will turn clear which appears black but this should only last for 18-48 hours. The best thing you can do is to remove the potentially infected cat or chrysalis before it infects the others and clean the cage thoroughly.

Jade

8/10/2019 11:15:54 am

I have hatched many monarchs in my life but have never seen it happen until today. At first what it was doing was normal then the chrysalis broke in half and the butterfly fell. Parts of the chrysalis were stuck to the butterfly and it was unable to release its frass. It hasnt moved since but is still alive. And only 1 of its legs are working.

8/20/2019 05:46:27 pm

Once infected, the best thing you can do is prevent other cats from getting infected. Remove the potentially infected caterpillar and put it in another cage to be monitored and then clean that cage thoroughly before adding any more monarchs. Best of luck!

Loretta M Smith

8/13/2019 02:41:05 am

I have a 8 day old monarch caterpillar. He He was eating great and than I came home from work and he is just laying there. It has been 12 hrs now that he hasnt eaten or moved ( that i noticed) What is going on?

Jill

8/17/2019 11:57:10 am

When they molt they stop eating and moving for a day or two

Marissa

8/13/2019 07:29:12 am

My daughter and I are are new to raising monarchs. We have several in different stages. I have one that I am concerned about. It was on a milk weed we dug up and I didn’t notice it. It was hanging upside down not in the j position. It’s legs are still attached to the leaf. I thought maybe it was going to changing in to the next phase but this am it is still hanging upside down. I thought it was dead but it started to move it’s head around like it it is trying to reach the leaf. It has not ate since we dug the plant up. I thought prolapse rectum but it’s not green like every thing I have read. Any ideas?

6/21/2020 01:51:20 am

That's what the caterpillar does when it tries to form a chrysallis and you or movement are disturbing it

Anjones24

8/16/2019 06:09:22 am

I have a chrysalis that has a dark spot on the one side of it. What could this be from? The caterpillar acted normal and ate normal. Went into the normal "j" Should I take it out so it doesn't spread this to the others or just keep an eye on it.

8/20/2019 05:48:33 pm

Thank you for your question. If there is any suspicion of an infection, I would remove that caterpillar or chrysalis very carefully, place it in another cage to monitor it and then clean the cage thoroughly.

Carol

8/16/2019 11:37:01 am

This is a question. My monarch hatched today but fell from the chrysalis before the wings were dry. What can I do?

8/20/2019 05:49:51 pm

You could carefully pick it up with a Q-tip and place it in a safe place for its wings to dry. Be careful not to further damage the wings of course. Best of luck!

Maddie

8/20/2019 09:34:18 am

I have a caterpillar (I honestly don’t know what kind of butterfly it will turn into) but the thing is, it attached itself to a stem and wove a few things of silk around itself but never finished the cocoon. U can see the wings and head forming on it, it stopes forming about a day or two ago, do u think it’s dead? I don’t know what to do with it. It’s been about 5 days since it attached itself

8/20/2019 05:51:08 pm

Hi Maddie,
I would give it all the time it needs to form it's cocoon or chrysalis. At that point, there is nothing you can do to help it along.

Tawnts

8/28/2019 07:07:42 pm

I have found that the best way to keep my caterpillars healthy is to keep each one in its own jar with a square of window screening overtop. After each chrysalis hatches, I wash the jar. I also wash the jar in the dishwasher if the caterpillar dies. This has been a bad year for the tachnid flies. I have lost 5 caterpillars to them already. Last I had none infected, regarded of the instar when I collected them. I hatched over 270 butterflies successfully last year. It was insane! In previous years i have never had more than one caterpillar infected by tachnid flies. I have also had two butterflies that hatched with pieces of chrysalis stuck to their wings and a lot more than normal that fell to the bottom of the jar before the wings opened. My husband laughed at me a few times when I washed the milkweed if I collected it from somewhere where it may have been contaminated by pesticides but obviously it may be a good idea to do all the time. I think I will start to do that all the time and see if that helps. Thank you for an excellent article!

Carolyn S. link

10/16/2019 04:27:12 pm

What do you use to wash your milkweed leaves?
Tap water plus dish soap? Or something else?
Thanks so much!

7/17/2020 01:24:19 pm

I bought plants at the local garden center as my caterpillars had stripped every plant I had and there were so many. I noticed the plants had spider mites and so I washed it with Dawn dish detergent mixed with water outside from the garden hose. The leaves lost a lot of color, but the caterpillars still ate them. Now some of them are having problems going into successful chrysalis so I'm wondering if they didn't get adequate nutrition from the leaves washed with soap even though I washed the soap off with a garden hose and let them dry before supplying to the caterpillars. So I would advise water only. The best plants were the ones I took the time to wipe each individual leaf with a paper towel soaked in water only, but that was so time consuming. It is possible they have picked up some other thing as I do occasionally bring caterpillars in from plants outside. They go into the J, but then shiver and the green goo oozes out of an apparent hole in their skin and only forms a small cap and then they die. I'm not sure if it's black death or something else. I have had 3-5 emerge fine every day, but the last 3 caterpillars didn't make it.They are in my screened in porch. Always seems to be something attacking them in some way. I'm thinking it is black death now for the recent ones. Very disheartening sometimes, but then my husband reminds me that if they were outside, only 5% of them would have survived. I use a hand vac every day to clean up the frass, but no way to clean the dirt at the base of the plants. Although I did put aluminum foil over the dirt and topped it with paper towels and that did seem to curb the problem before, but again, it was time consuming. I have had tachnid flies before, now it seems to be spider mites are a severe problem that I've had trouble keeping under control. Also I have noticed snails and ants that are small enough to get through the mesh cages....grrr.

6/21/2020 01:52:52 am

Use vinegar fly traps for the tachinid flies. Put one near each milkweed plant. They work

Jami

8/30/2019 05:19:59 pm

I live in NJ. Chrysalis form then with in a day are gone. Top of chrysalis is left stuck to fence. What would be taking them?

9/2/2019 05:08:52 pm

It could be anything, but I would suspect a praying mantis. Anything bigger than the chrysalis might grab it. They don't have a chance in the wild with so many creatures out to get them.

Jeanine

9/3/2019 08:20:27 am

This wss very helpful to me. 2018 I had a bumper crop of monarchs in my flower beds. This it looks like the black death got all of them. I don't use any pesticides. I had a great crop of milkweed too. How can I prevent this?

9/3/2019 10:09:27 pm

Hi Jeanine. Try collecting the eggs when they're freshly laid and to do so just grab the whole leaf and wrap it in moist paper towels they'll emerge in 3 to 5 days, can make homes for them out of spinach containers, just cut out a rectangle off the cover and tape a piece of screen on it this will help with ventilation, you could easily put 2 to a container and bring them indoors. Watch a video of Rich Lund he has great knowledge about raising Monarchs. God bless.

Sharon Sivertsen

7/15/2020 04:18:21 pm

What’s a spinach container?

Lilian

9/5/2019 07:40:50 am

Chrysalis formed against glass as such it;s flat on the top side (above the gold band) wonder how will this impact the butterfly? Thank you

9/5/2019 01:19:54 pm

It's hard to tell. You could remove it and hang it somewhere else. The glass may get pretty warm. Try to pull up the silk around it where it is attached and tie or use a spot of glue to attach it to a stick or something where it can hang straight down. Don't move until it has hardened a couple of days.

Liz

9/7/2019 01:55:14 pm

Hello, I currently have a cat that took about 36 hours to molt. It has now been about 6 hours since molt but hasn’t consumed all the skin and is really just laying around. Is this normal? It just entered its fifth Instar.

Ann

9/8/2019 04:04:13 pm

Greetings,
We have a monarch chrysalis on the side of your house which has been fun to watch. However, it has turned black, is it dead?

9/8/2019 05:15:24 pm

Before they eclose, they get black and you can see their wings inside the chrysalis. Otherwise, it could be infected and die. Once they turn black, they usually eclose the same day. Mine always do in the morning or very early afternoon.

Emily Roth

9/13/2019 11:06:32 am

I have a monarch which I raised from an egg. He just can't fly he is 72 hrs old. I have tried everything I can think of. Food gave orange slices, made nectar, put him on flowers and left for hrs. He just sits there a strong wind knocks him over he can't really even hang on to the plant. I need HELP!! I am not sure how to help this little one. I have even unfurled his proboscis and put in the nectar.

Alice Paidas

9/17/2019 06:17:17 pm

Hi I had a butterfly fall from his chrysalis last year. We helped him back up to the top of the mesh cage,but he clearly had a damaged wing. He was perfect in every other way. My 6 yr old wanted to keep him since he only flapped around and wouldn't survive in the wild. So we kept him and cared for him until he died almost 3 months later. He was a very special butterfly. He would wait to come out of the cage and ride on our shirts. He was amazing..we still miss him.

J Albetski

9/25/2019 12:10:22 pm

Someone gave my wife a chrysalis glued to a stick. After 10 days or so it changed from green to clear and started to emerge but it never fully did. A red liquid appeared on the paper towel under where it hung. We waited some
Hours, then I tried to get the clear part off. Didn’t want to hurt it so left it overnight. This morning got it off of the stick but it’s wings never opened and it’s very weak. I gave it an orange slide and sugar water on a paper towel. But I think we should just freeze it? Something is clearly wrong with it.

Jennywren

9/26/2019 11:34:40 pm

Once they eclose, if their wings are not pumped with their liquid, they won't be able to fly. It could have the dreaded OE, or a type of bacteria that causes them to be weak and they can't hold on after eclosing, so they fall and can't get up. Once they've been lying for a while, their wings won't fill out. If it hasn't died already, yes, you could freeze it.

Jennifer

10/19/2019 11:07:29 am

Hi, our monarch chrysalis’ have been clear/black for 4 days and are in a mesh enclosure. Suddenly I found about. 4 flies inside the enclosure one day. A different cat had died at the bottom of the cage just prior to the other two forming their chrysalis. I noticed after the fact and was unable to open the enclosure due to the fact the chrysalis had been attached to the zipper. So I’m hoping that the dead cat did not infect the others. They have made it through the entire chrysalis cycle except have not emerged (colors changed from green to black/clear- I can still see orange wings a bit). Is there any chance they’re alive? We’re in October so I think these are 4th generation cats- maybe they take a little longer to emerge? The chrysalis have been up for about 16 days

10/21/2019 08:12:15 am

Within the last week I've lost two large monarch caterpillars to a predator. After researching pretty sure wasps found them. Both caterpillars were on the giant milkweed plant (potted). I just brought the plant inside to try and save the remaining caterpillars. Will they survive on the plant inside and should I do anything else? Or move the pot in another area of garden? Not sure what to do:( so devastating to see aftermath. Thank you for any advice!

10/21/2019 10:04:24 am

Where are you located? Must be far south since it is so late. Won't hurt to try to keep them in. I do all of mine separately in containers and feed them a leaf or so a day. I try to get as eggs, but often bring in all sizes and take my chances. I'd be worried about other things being in the plant that might also get to them.

10/21/2019 10:52:54 am

Thanks so much for your suggestion. Yes, I am in Central Florida- it's still 85 degrees here and lots of monarch activity. But seeing more and more disappear. ..Will look into containers and try that!

Paulina

10/27/2019 11:46:29 am

Hi,
My monarch caterpillars are leaving their host milkweed plant to find a place to form a chrysalis. They are nice and plump and active. However, some of them are bending over the middle of their body, forming a very sharp angle, and dying. They don’t have any change in color, I don’t see any discharge from their body, or any spots that suggests eggs from parasites or insects. Any ideas on what’s happening to them? Thank you, I appreciate your help.

Paulina link

10/27/2019 01:27:48 pm

I’m including a short video of the caterpillars

10/29/2019 01:20:52 pm

Generally, when they bend, they turn black and die. They apparently had some type of bacteria entering their bodies that eventually kills them. Recommended to disinfect everything and not keep them altogether in a container so it spreads. I do keep all of mine individually in containers, but do lose some like that. At least separated, it can't spread to others.

Susan Smith

11/18/2019 06:02:57 am

I have eight Monarch chrysalises (chyrsalids?) and it's already November 18. Should I winter them inside? I have a decent sized cage and can let them for exercise. The longest I've had a Monarch was a week or so for one with deformed wings and then s/he died. I'm very willing to try but very unsure how to do this.

11/18/2019 06:04:18 am

Pt 2-I'm sorry. I forgot to say we are in Central Florida but having a colder than usual autumn.

Amber

11/24/2019 05:53:50 pm

Hi Susan! I believe there is a group of monarchs that stay in florida instead of migrating to mexico/california, so I think the monarchs should be fine.

11/24/2019 05:42:37 pm

We recently raised some Monarch butterflies in my science classroom. Although it was a very fun and exciting experience there has been one thought that's been on my mind. A couple of our monarchs had some thought-provoking deaths. One of them went into a strange j-shape before they turned black and fell. At first I thought it was the black death, but after doing some reading I realized that our monarch did not liquify. Another death that I found interesting was a case of monarch cannibalism. One of our monarchs went into their chrysalis and a caterpillar that was still alive ate part of the chrysalis. The part of the chrysalis that the caterpillar ate turned black, I'm guessing because of the blood, but it looked like it continued to develop. The caterpillar also went into a chrysalis. After 2 weeks I believe, we could start to see the outline of the wings on both chrysalids, but it has been 3 weeks now and we believe that they are both dead.

11/24/2019 05:51:39 pm

Hi! it's me again. I forgot to mention, there was one of our monarchs that died as an adult monarch. I believe it was because of OE, since his wings were deformed when he emerged. But he did fall from his chrysalis, we moved him to a string on top of cotton balls, and when he was in his caterpillar stage he grazed over a caterpillar that was bent at a very strange angle (it was in it's 4th stage). Could that have affected the wings somehow? I thought maybe the caterpillar he grazed over might've had OE but I don't know.

Sally

12/3/2019 09:13:11 pm

I have a caterpillar chrysalis since 21/11. It turned dark but still transparent on 2/12. Now it’s not moving at all. Is it dead? Usually it will move it’s tail.

12/4/2019 05:43:52 pm

What do you mean by tail? A monarch chrysalis does not have a tail. Is it a chrysalis for something other than a monarch?

12/4/2019 11:23:31 am

Hi. I've read all the comments and answers and mine is a little different.
I have milkweed in my yard with lots of catipillars.
I saw them dying . Both in catipillars and in chrystalis. Had maggots and possible black death?
So a month ago I bought a new milkweed to give the catipillars I brought clean leaves so they weren't infected.
A couple days later there was a baby on the new milkweed. None of the other catipillars were ever near it. So I put mesh around it so it was totally protected from everything. I nvr even touched it.
I did put it outside away from the other milkweed and nvr opened the mesh bc the catipillar was doing just fine.
It was eating good. Then climbed up the mesh and was up there for 2 days then two days in J form. Total 4 days. Weather fluctuating from high 55 to 69 to lows 45 to 50 at night.
Alive and well last night. Checked on it this morning and it was shriveled up. Barely anything there. Maybe just the skin? Nvr went green. What happened?
I found another one like this two days ago by other milkweed on the ground. Nvr in j form.
What happened to it? It was big and healthy last night in J. Was hoping to see it in crystalyis this morning.

ricardo link

3/7/2020 03:25:56 pm

Hi my name is ricardo reporter kiro at work this morning at home 🏡 The Seattle Times Saturday morning I don’t suck right now

faye eaton link

4/2/2020 12:02:04 am

My milkweed cotton bush was covered in large caterpillars. It also has tiny ones hatching from numerous eggs. However, at no stage have I seen any crystalises..I don't use any sprays etc - I only have the one bush. It came up out of some compost I bought. The bush has been very healthy. Some of y native plants died because of the hot weather and drought but this bush has thrived!

4/4/2020 11:08:51 am

Hi Faye,
Thanks for your comment. Would you be able to send a photo of your milkweed bush with the eggs? I would be curious to see what the caterpillars look like. Thanks!

Jeri Thiede

4/9/2020 10:10:05 pm

It could be that they aren't big enough to make a chrysalis yet. But the other thing is that they leave the plant to make their chrysalis, often about 30 feet away from where they were feeding. If there are eggs and some hatching, larger caterpillars may accidentally eat them. I always bring all my eggs and caterpillars inside to raise them.

Isabella

4/11/2020 10:52:45 am

Hi, um I have a few questions and concerns. First off, about five of my small, instar 2 cats died (about 5 of them) I'm not sure why but I try to follow all precautions but they just stop moving. I know for sure their dead because its been 4 days since they moved. Next: One of my caterpillars was molting and now its done but the old skin is stuck to its butt, what can I do to help? And lastly, I have a chrysalis that it starting to turn dark (I think normally) but the wing areas of it aren't as clear as they rest et, is that okay?? sorry if that didn't make a lot of sense :(

Angeline

5/7/2020 10:09:42 am

I’ve been raising monarchs for nearly 8 years now and stumbled upon something new that is affecting my caterpillars. They are dying while turning green, as though they’re soon to enter chrysalis... you can almost see the chrysalis under their striped skin. Sometimes it hardens sometimes the caterpillar stay soft, but it always dies. I’ve also had more cases were caterpillar’s are entering their chrysalis and part of the green chrysalis protrudes but then the caterpillar stops there and dies. Do you have any idea what could be causing this and how I can prevent it? I’ve dealt with nearly every other Butterfly ailment and predator including: assassin bug’s, tree frogs and toads which are usually not listed but this one is new to me and I am baffled.

Rosanna

5/26/2020 11:02:35 pm

Same thing here, tbut his is the 1st time its happed to my caterpillars. I also I'm trying to figure out what's causing this.

6/4/2020 07:17:15 pm

This just happened to me too. My remaining caterpillars were able to form their chrysalis but I have been having issues with them eclosing weak & falling. Have had to euthanize a few. I suspect I purchased pesticide free but OE infected milkweed. I think my 1st caterpillar that only formed part of the chrysalis was weak. It's been a sad week of eclosing here!

Lynn

8/18/2020 07:36:15 pm

I was doing a search for this very same reason. I can see below the skin(?) the green color of the chrysalis showing. My first year trying this. Wondering what is going to happen to him. Hope it’s nothing.

8/19/2020 02:51:42 pm

Well, I know what was happening now. They were ready to Jhang. Had 9 do it after my first message yesterday. That explains it!! They all have made chrysalisis now, too! Between 10:00 am and around 3:00 today. Amazing to watch!!!

Wendy Talley

9/26/2020 02:30:27 pm

This happened to me at the end of the summer. It ended in 100% death rate. Did you ever get an answer? My caterpillars started dying in mid pupate. Half caterpillar, half chrysalis. It's like an alien horror show every night when I get home from work. I didn't seen any responses that explained why this is happening.

Lynette Calfee

5/12/2020 11:00:28 am

I have a mesh habitat and noticed a caterpillar crawling across on the mesh leaving a light green watery like trail. I'm wondering if it is getting ready to form a chrysalis. It doesn't appear to have anal prolapse so I'm wondering what is going on. Thank you.

Aracely

5/13/2020 11:02:34 am

We have been watching our monarch chrysalis for ten days now and has been a very solid black color for over 7 days. Is it dead? We originally found the green chrysalis on the dirt and decided to leave it alone to not bother it. But after research we decided to relocate him on the 3rd day and hang it from a branch. Could it be that the moisture from the dirt was too much for it? It has some dirt that stuck to it from laying down. Could have deformed it, but would this cause it to die? I can see wing outline on chrysalis, but it's all solid black. We had small child front one day during this time. Is it dead?

Jessica

5/14/2020 06:58:03 pm

Hello- I have both a butterfly garden and also grow/propagate succulents. In one of the online groups I am in, someone posted photos of early instar monarch caterpillars on trailing jade (senecio family) and thought they were eating it. Others in the group commented that they had had this happen as sell. Have you heard of this? If they are actually eating it, do you think this is harmful to them?

Alisha link

5/20/2020 05:48:48 am

Hello, yesterday I had one of my caterpillars die while attempting to pupate. The green underneath was showing just around the head and that’s as far as he made it. It looked similar to anal prolapse although at the other end. And obviously the green bit was normal looking for a chrysalis. I was wondering if this sometimes happens or if he was likely infected with tachnid flies or some other ailment. Thank you.

amritha

5/20/2020 10:55:30 am

I found a caterpillar attaching to the ground to form a chrysalis and brought it inside with some of the dirt underneath it. parts of its have turned darkish brown and the bottom tip has become black. It looks smaller than when it started. I thought this was part of its chrysalis process but now I'm afraid its not surviving well. Can someone advise me?

Eileen Brabender

5/30/2020 12:15:31 pm

My monarch butterfly chrysalis is one week old. It is green but has a bump on the side for days that looks like either the butterfly is stuck or some bug has attached itself to the outside. What is happening??

Katie

8/20/2020 05:07:20 pm

That is likely the skin that shed when it became a chrysalis. Just leave it be!

Sayyedah

6/2/2020 01:10:12 pm

Hi..... my caterpillar was originally a bright green, but after 2 days of keeping it, it started to turn sort of brownish and dark green, basically dull colors, and very lethargic and lazy..... he started to eat very little too 😔😬! So I wanted to know, IS MY CATERPILLAR 🐛 DYING?! Or is it natural?

Thank you

6/6/2020 09:08:06 pm

I guess whatever was happening is done now. I thought maybe it was getting ready to make a chrysalis, but not sure. What ended up happening?

7/15/2020 05:00:48 pm

The caterpillar was bright green? That’s apparently not a monarch. Cabbage butterfly, maybe? How big? Any other features or markings?

Lily

6/3/2020 02:29:10 pm

Hello :-) one of our monarchs keeps falling off the leafs would you know why?

Zahaslan

6/6/2020 06:44:39 pm

Hi, I just had a Monarch butterfly coming out of its chrysalis and clinged on well to dry. After about 2 hours it's started traveling a bit further up my plant so I thought its going to be flying soon so I took my plant outside. An hour later I saw the butterfly had fallen off (there was wind) and I tried to put it back on the plant but it seems to have stopped knowing how to cling, it keeps falling off! And it still appear not to be able to fly yet (maybe the wings are not completely dry yet. How do I help this one? Feeling helpless

6/6/2020 07:10:33 pm

My experience has been minimum 3 hours of drying but preferably 4 hours. After 4 hours they seem to have no issues. I would bring it back inside or hang it from a flower or tree limb

Lauren

6/10/2020 01:01:51 pm

We found a caterpillar in our yard and put it in a jar with some leaves, within one day he started to hang in the j form, the next morning he had a gray cocoon surrounding him, I put a little water in the jar and left him, today I noticed the cocoon still the same but I could notice the wings forming, and then I saw in the bottom of the jar what looked like the top of his head???? What is this? Is it dead, or is this normal part of the process???

6/16/2020 01:13:22 pm

When you found the cat, it was in the process of finding a spot to make its chrysalis. Usually they are green. Are you sure it's a monarch? Monarch cats only eat milkweed leaves. If water is still in there, I would take it out if you can. When they pupate, their old skin falls off, with the head being last, so that's probably why you think it's the head. You may want to do a little research about monarchs.

6/11/2020 05:22:44 am

A friend gave us 3 monarch caterpillars to care for, I have them in a box with a mesh covering. One climbed up to the mesh netting and stayed there overnight into this morning. He is alive and pooping
but not moving much. Looking at the mesh and his underside there is a silky thread like pattern between him and the mesh. Is he ok? Is he stuck on the mesh? Thanks for your advice!

6/16/2020 01:18:22 pm

When the cat is getting ready to pupate, they lay down a layer of "silk" to attach the cremaster to so they can hang down without falling.

6/15/2020 04:52:04 pm

My one caterpillar I am trying to raise crawled to the top or the mesh enclosure I have, in what I expected was to pupate, but then dropped. It doesn’t look injured, but I can tell it had started to attach to the top with silk. That is now gone and the caterpillar is on the side of the enclosure, but hasn’t gone back to the top. It’s been several hours. Is there still a chance it will make it and start over again?

Meredith Priestley

6/16/2020 01:35:19 pm

My (outdoor) caterpillars are all dying. Their normally green stripes are pale yellow. Plants are in pots, and there are spider webs around the plants. I have tried to clear those, but found many little caterpillars in the webs as well. Does anyone know why they are yellow?

Zoe

6/25/2020 05:21:49 am

I’m having the same issue of paleness in the faces of maybe 2/100 of my caterpillars here in Florida as well! Never seen but thankfully none have died yet from this. Wondering if I should separate them for a bit

Connor

6/17/2020 08:43:29 pm

Not a monarch caterpillar but it was a small banana yellow one that fed on the vines that grew on my fence, I haven’t been able to identify the plant. The caterpillar seemed to be in the second or third instar during the time I had it (it was shedding when I found it). During its shed outdoors, it progressed very quickly and immediately started crawling again, however, about 2-3 days later and the time for it to shed and transition instars came again, this time however, it started shedding and then it just... stopped, midway through. The shedded skin had what looked like dark red dried fluid on the inside of its skin. It’s been more than a full 24 hours and it has not progressed at all through its shedding. I checked on it at the 24 hour mark and the caterpillar has gone completely limp. Its new skin is brown and When I went to coax it into moving, it seemed unusually squishy where it’s new skin was exposed. I was wondering if its new skin got caught on its old skin and it started hemorrhaging or if it couldn’t get its way out of its old skin and suffocated itself.

Laurie Passer

6/19/2020 07:55:06 am

Help please! My caterpillar fell from its I position and is no longer attached to its silk. What should I do?

Jaidin Borenski

6/19/2020 09:21:05 am

Hello! Wonderful site you have here, but anyways onto my question/ ask for help.

One of my cats has a clear-ish spot on it’s body that sort of looks like a scar. It eats, poops, and moves around just fine, but I’m wondering if it was infected by some parasite. If so I will remove it from the two other cats I have housed with it.

I haven’t moved it to a bigger cutting of milkweed for fear of losing track of it, and am simply feeding it on single leaves (all of which I have rinsed prior to serving).

I would hate to have those horrible wasps or flies ruin one of my chrysalides, and it would be a shame for such a normal-looking caterpillar..

Quinlan C.

7/19/2020 09:25:08 pm

Hey Jaidin, just had the same thing happen. Monarch caterpillar looks as if it has scars (not bruises in three spots on it's body. I did have it and 3 other smaller caterpillars housed with a larger one but none of the other small ones have any similar markings and as far as I know they have had plenty of access to fresh food ever day (refill once in the morning and before bed), so no reason for the larger one to accidentally "munch" on the caterpillar in question. Curious how your lad turned out. Was it alright or was it indeed a parasite or other fatal condition?
Best Wishes.
Q.C

Laurie

7/3/2020 06:02:19 am

I have 4 black swallowtail cats and they seem to have eaten pesticide. One had the green vomit and I cleaned them all, patted dry and cleaned their jar. The green vomit one is in his own jar...but the rest look lethargic and have sticky poo. I feel horrible. Is there any chance of them making it through and just popping it out?

7/5/2020 07:59:57 am

Hi Laurie, it's great that you are keeping them isolated from the rest of the healthy caterpillars! Does this jar you are using for them allow proper ventilation? Many butterfly rearers prefer to use mesh cages because this allows water to evaporate within the cage and lessens the risk of disease. Another question is how are you sourcing your leaves for them (from your garden, a nursery, elsewhere?) You may want to rinse the leaves off before feeding them and make sure they haven't been sprayed with a systemic pesticide which makes the entire plant toxic even if you do rinse it. Best of luck!

Lana

7/4/2020 08:19:33 am

Hello! I have my milkweed plants in the house. When I bought them I found several caterpillars on it. But now I only see 2 of them. One of them has his backside stuck to the plant and he is struggling to move. Why is he stuck to the plant? He is on the top side of the plant. Can you help me please. If he dies, I will only have one left. Thank you.

7/5/2020 08:15:04 am

Hi Lana, thank you for your questions.
First of all, have you placed your caterpillars next to a window so they have natural light? Many studies have found that monarchs will not migrate if their access to natural rhythms are disturbed.
It's possible that the cat that disappeared simply reached its pupal stage and went to find a good place to create its chrysalis.
I do not know why the monarch would be stuck to a plant on its backside. It's possible that there was an excess of latex from the milkweed plant (white, sticky substance) and it got stuck.
If you can, VERY carefully unstick him so he can continue to eat. Monarch caterpillars need to be eating almost constantly in order to reach metamorphosis.
Lastly, always make sure that milkweed plants are free of pesticides. Even plant nurseries spray most of their plants to keep bugs off. Good luck!

Catherine

7/11/2020 11:53:54 pm

Two monarch crystalis have the forlegs showing with the crystalis not being completely formed on the top. Is a butterfly going to develop and emerge in this situation? I think the J stage was rushed in both cases.

Vanessa

7/19/2020 05:57:27 am

My daughters and I are raising monarchs from our milkweed in our yard. We had two big fat ones and one went into J formation the day after we got him. He has a baby in the same cage that is growing and doing well. It’s been probably 4 days and the j formation stalled and it’s hanging straight down with a silk goo coming off of it. I assume it’s dead. What could have happened? What about the baby? Our other cage had a big one make his j form two days ago and is moved onto the green pupae.

Thanks

7/20/2020 09:32:23 pm

Sounds like a case of the parasitic Tachinid fly. Try to look for a brownish pellet. That should be what "dropped". Remove any healthy remaining Monarchs as soon as possible and if you have found the Tachinid larvae before it hatched, squish and burn (to prevent survivors) has been my method.

Best of Luck.
-Q.C

Andrea Jowett

7/26/2020 11:38:54 am

We have a chrysalis with lots of black speckles on it. Is that a disease?

Rey H

8/1/2020 09:31:00 pm

Are they bright black, and seem to moreso be on the outside of the chrysalis? I’m in the same boat and read that it could be green hemolymph (blood) that dried to black scabs. “If a chrysalis has bled a little bit or has been damaged even a small amount, the dried blood can cause bright black marks and spots.” I read some people say that their butterflies emerged fine and healthy after so fingers crossed for us.

Julie Shipp

7/30/2020 02:04:15 pm

Is there a way to post photos to the comments? I am trying to identify a live black 1 1/2-2” insect in a bin of yard waste. It somewhat resembled a butterfly with a similar head, eyes, body and antenna, all black. Where its wings would be were four separate “appendages” with a joint. At the tips of the appendages were some filmy bits with colours reminiscent of a Monarch (White and orange mostly). It was able to move a little by kind of hobbling sideways using the “appendages”. It looked nothing like the photos of emerging butterflies I have been able to find. I haven’t been able to find any insects that look like it by doing a google reverse image search. Nor did it appear to resemble Any pictures of butterflies with disease. Difficult to identify I know without a photo. I would be happy to send one if you tell me how. Thanks!

Janet

7/31/2020 09:18:33 pm

I've been loosing about 30% of my cats at first or second instar- no eggs or larvae - writhing and turning black - seems like their back end paralizes. No pesticides or chemicals - I'm so careful after a bad experience with a seresto collar on our dog last year. Any ideas what it is?

anet

8/2/2020 10:21:41 am

...and now in another cage, 4 of 8 cats - all had seemed healthy - didn't make it through eclosing. Losing overall more than last year. Am I doing something wrong?

Diane

8/2/2020 07:43:33 am

Hi, my husband recently purchased a shade plant at a local home improvement store. When he got it home we noticed three monarch caterpillars hanging; two were dead already. The third formed a "J" within 30 minutes, and formed a chrysalis shortly after that. Now two days later, we see a very thin string of goop coming out the bottom of the chrysalis. From your description, I am afraid this may be tachinid fly maggots. Is there any hope at this point, or will the Monarch perish inside the chrysalis? Is there anything we can do? Thank you for your help!!

8/2/2020 08:42:36 am

Oh no! That sounds like classic tachinid fly. Unfortunately that is the end for this little caterpillar. If you leave it any longer, you will likely witness the maggot/birth of the fly. At this point (when a floss-like string is hanging from either the J-cat or the chrysalis) is when I euthanize by placing in the freezer. This also avoids the successful birth of those pesky flies in my area (which I don’t want messing with my other cats). I’ve lost 3 cats/chrysalides to tflies so far :/ Hope you get monarch butterflies visiting your plant soon!

8/2/2020 08:51:58 am

Oh, that makes me so sad :-( Ok, thank you very much for the reply, I appreciate it.

Amanda Gale

8/4/2020 09:33:13 am

Thank you for this info. I found a couple of eggs and a small Caterpillar on my plumeria plants. I brought them all inside, and I placed the Caterpillar in a mesh cage with a milkweed plant. The caterpillar seemed to be doing great for the last 2 weeks. Last night I saw him hanging on the side of the mesh so I thought it was time for him to create his chrysalis. This morning he was right side up and his frass was red. He seems to be lethargic. Is he dying?

Sarah

8/5/2020 11:11:06 am

New to raising butterflies! Brought 3 cats in, 2 the same size and 1 slightly smaller. 2 bigger ones are fine and are currently in J shape. 3rd smaller one hardly moved at all for like a day, so I thought he was molting. Then today he was moving, but oddly, head back and forth, not really going anywhere. I went out to get fresh milkweed and came back and noticed he was curled up in corner with thin white strands coming out of him and the stands were MOVING, like some sort of parasitic worm. I have not been able to find out what it is, nor did I take pictures. I was too disgusted and panicked that I rushed to get it out so it didn't affect the others. Any idea what it was?
Side note: Do they move slightly when in J shape? Like moving their head a little up and down and almost look like they're munching on something. Is this them preparing the chrysalis?

8/5/2020 11:59:19 am

Hi Sarah,

That’s awesome you’re getting into this! I personally love it. Unfortunately it sounds like your little caterpillar guy got injected with eggs by tachinid flies :/ when thin white strands come out like that it’s usually the end for the poor cats and they are already dead or won’t survive. I would suggest euthanizing by placing in the freezer (I personally don’t want more flies born which can then attack my other cats). As for the J shaped movements, those are totally normal. They twitch here and there. In fact if you move them too much or another caterpillar or movement comes near them they’ll move and twitch aggressively and then once left alone will continue hanging out in their J shape. Good luck!

8/5/2020 12:11:27 pm

I assumed it was the tachinid flies but I didn't see any larvae. And that the strands were moving completely freaked me out. I placed the cup with cat and strands outside in blistering sun, hoping to bake them. Now I'm afraid to look! 😳
Thanks for the help!

Jessica L Dellario

8/10/2020 11:51:06 am

I recently had an accident and dropped a box of mason jars with caterpillars in them. Unfortunately two shattered when they hit the cement porch. One cat died instantly while the other experienced anal prolapse. So I can say that trauma is definitely one cause of anal prolapse.
I am also noticing vomit on some of the leaves. Weird thing is I can cut a leaf in half and give each half to a different cat and only one will vomit. I have washed the leaves well and let them dry. It doesn't appear to be killing them but I'm still nervous about it.
I have released 10 so far this year. I have 2 waiting to be released (I'm at work). I have around 50 chrysalises. I have 25 cats that are still in mason jars and about 40 hatch-lings in containers. I released 13 Monarch butterflies last year. My goal this year is 100.

8/10/2020 12:42:25 pm

Amazing!! We have similar numbers so far and goals. Also those accidents are the worst. The other week I accidentally hurt a chrysalis which eventually didn’t make it. The other day someone (I think me) stepped on a caterpillar (RIP) and yesterday my dog killed a butterfly that I hadn’t released yet (RIP). Always sad but keep reminding myself that there would be way less surviving if we weren’t doing this. So far I’ve released 26 this season. Have about 30 chrysalides and waiting for 20 eggs to hatch. Good luck!

8/11/2020 05:28:13 am

When I left for work this morning there were 7 that emerged from their chrysalises. I can't wait to get home and release them. I still have 42 chrysalises. I lost a couple cats last night. I don't have the heart to kill them when they start looking sick so I move their jars into another area and watch them. I can always hope they will recover even though I know deep down they won't. But I think 10 out of 130 really isn't too bad. I've lost more last year on the plants waiting for eggs to hatch. That's why I decided to collect the eggs this year.

Stacey K

8/10/2020 02:33:13 pm

I've been raising monarchs for 3 years with great success but this year is not as good. I've had a few with the tachinid fly issue and having a hard time finding caterpillars this year in my milkweed. I have a question on what is happening with a smaller caterpillar, he looks great but it's black face came off today and its now the color of a chrysalis and its poo looks like caterpillar skin. Anyone know what happened? No poison or flea or tick meds around my home or yard. Thank you

8/10/2020 04:41:13 pm

So this is weird, my caterpillar that had it's black face fall off and hasn't moved for hours has now started crawling all over like nothing is wrong. His face now looks like the rest of his striped body. What is going on??? I've never experienced this before.

8/10/2020 05:11:34 pm

Kinda sounds to me like it was molting. They don’t move for a day or more and shed their old skin. I believe they do this 4 or 5 times during the caterpillar stage. You think that could be it? I’ve seen it happen and they leave a trail of their old skin behind.

8/11/2020 05:24:29 am

He was definitely molting. The skin should be gone. He will eat that for nutrients. I have pictures of mine molting. This is my second year raising an the first time I got to see the molt.

8/11/2020 09:02:56 am

Thank you Jessica and Rey for your reply I've never seen a caterpillar do that before, I was worried. This morning when I checked on him he is fine and eating.

8/13/2020 09:39:24 am

This morning I found one of them pellet things in my butterfly house and I don't know where it came from. Everything looks normal in the house. I have had the tachinid issue with 3 of my caterpillars this year, first time with this problem. I got a new butterfly house and moved the cats in there. How will I know where the pellet came from if all looks good in the house? For me this has not been a good year for raising monarchs, makes me sad.

Valeria

8/17/2020 06:37:36 am

Hello, This summer I have raised over 50 adult monarch butterflies. They were all healthy, but from about 10 of them, a small amount of orangish-brown fluid droplets fell down as they were emerging from the chrysalis. They all seemed healthy otherwise and flew off. Is this discharge normal? I haven't found any report on this on any sites so far.
Also, this morning, an emerging butterfly had its wings stuck to the empty chrysalis shell and couldn't separate itself. I removed it from the cage and poured water on its wings to loosen them from the casing. Its wings stayed deformed and small. Otherwise it seemed healthy, could flop its wings and walked briskly. Wondering it was dehydration. Anybody have these experiences?
Thank-you. Valeria

8/17/2020 10:28:30 am

The orange fluid is inside their butt when they emerge from the chrysalis. They pump that fluid into their wings to push them out. When they are done pushing their wings out they will expel any extra liquid. that is the orange you are seeing at the bottom, the leftover fluid. As for the one stuck to it's chrysalis, I have not yet had that happen. I've seen their feet stuck and I've had to pull them away from it, but all have flown away. The one you mention may not if it's wings didn't push out.I have released 43 as of yesterday.

8/17/2020 11:49:58 am

Hi Valeria,
Someone answered the question about the orange fluid which is totally normal. As for the butterfly getting stuck to the chrysalis, I’ve had this happen too and similarly some water (wet q-tip) dabbed on the chrysalis/butterfly got it right off. I’ve heard this is some dryness/ potentially due to the chrysalis being exposed to sun and drying out a bit. I started spraying my chrysalides with a bit of water every morning and I think that it helped. Haven’t had it happen again and I’ve released 50 butterflies as of today. Good luck! -Rey H

Valeria Kovacs

8/17/2020 01:43:45 pm

Hi Jessica and Rey H,
I was hoping that orangish-fluid was normal. Thank-you for confirming it. I do cover up the cage when the sun is shining on it, but this one was at the corner and may have been exposed more.
My other deformed butterfly this year had a number of mishaps, but managed to live a week after it emerged. First, it got tangled in the webbing of a caterpillar that just pupated. While struggling to get away, both went crashing down to the bottom of the metal cage. The chrysalis did not make it. It looked like the caterpillar was a goner as well, so I just brought it into the house to die. However, while lying on its side, it pupated. To keep it in an upright position, I attached its silky web tip to a paper clip (black, the squeeze kind) and suspended it inside the cage. When it pulled itself from its chrysalis, the little bit of webbing was not strong enough to hold it. Once more it fell and I only noticed it after it had pumped fluid into its wings already. The interesting part of this story is that I could keep it alive for a whole week by taking it outside to feed on the coneflowers and black-eyed-susans. Unfortunately when I wasn't beside it, a hornet grabbed its rear end. I could pull the hornet off, but 2 hours later it died.

Marilyn Fowler link

8/20/2020 12:44:04 pm

I have had 8 successful monarch releases until today, I have lost three in a row. They start to shed their final skin to go into the chrysalis stage stage and they get part way and stop and green stuff drips out and they die. I have other caterpillars and already formed chrysalis in the same cage. I have removed the caterpillars that wer not hanging from the top yet. But what happened?

8/20/2020 01:16:41 pm

It sounds like maybe they were parasitized. When the parasite attacks it makes the chrysalis bleed and that would be the green stuff dripping out. If you let it go a bunch of tiny little wasps will probably emerge. If you want to wait to see what happens place it in a separate container like a mason jar with a screened lid. That way if the wasps do come out you can kill them instead of letting them go.

Marilyn Fowler

8/20/2020 01:42:25 pm

These were all raised from eggs I found on the same day?

8/22/2020 06:40:44 pm

Is it possible that one of the other caterpillars took a bite out of another's chrysalis? If you raised them from eggs then chances are slim for a parasite, unless they are exposed.

Kassidy

8/24/2020 09:05:14 am

I have an interesting cat this year.
He hatched without front antenna, only rear. He has splotches in his stripes but only the black stripes! And his little head twitches when he's trying to rest. He is currently 5th in star, eating and growing well. Should be ready to do his flying J tonight or tomorrow. So I guess we'll see what happens when he pupates!! Otherwise the rest of my guys have done beautifully this year and I've never seen this before!

Sunshine

8/26/2020 10:46:56 am

Oh, that's so odd! I hope he stays healthy. Would love to hear how his pupation goes - I hope you'll post an update! :)

8/26/2020 10:55:16 am

Hi sunshine!
He's fully pupated but his chrysalis has a few spots on it that worry me.. nothing i have found about OE or any other ailments seem to match this little fella. He also had 3 enclosure mates that are perfectly healthy with bright green chrysalis about a week old so I'm truly at a loss but maybe he will make it.. fingers crossed!!!

8/24/2020 10:51:35 am

I had a butterfly emerge this morning who fell from her empty chrysalis before drying. When I came out to go to work she was laying on the bottom in a wet mess of wings reaching for the top. I got her out and put her on a screen in an aquarium. I am hoping and praying that she was able to fix herself. I don't get home for another 4 hours. I truly hope she'll be able to fly. I have one that emerged last week that fell but I wasn't home and she dried with curled wings. She can't fly, but is hell bent that she is going to. I've been feeding her oranges and she is ok but I feel horrible that she'll never fly. Out of 63 butterflies this season these are the only 2 I've had an issue with.

8/27/2020 09:03:04 am

So when I got home HE was still hanging upside down in the aquarium. I took him and put him with the female with curly wings. His top left wing was under his bottom left wing so they were at odd angles and in no position for him to fly. I was able to pull the top out from under the bottom and they laid flat but were still not straight. He can't fly. When he tries the wings flip back under each other and I have to put them back. I honestly wish this would have happened sooner as I could have just kept them together for the summer and let them procreate together. Now that we are at the end of the season they aren't even interested in each other. They just want to fly south. I will keep them and feed them until they pass away. I take them out everyday so they can try to spread their wings. Their determination is incredible. But they don't get far so I put them back on the orange and they eat and relax. I've added a branch to the tank and they climb on it and use it to get to the top screen and hang at night. It's about all I can really do. I will NOT kill them.

9/1/2020 12:43:14 pm

So he made it till last night. I check them before going to bed and he was stiff and not moving. I checked again this morning and he was on his back. He made it a week though. His favorite food was the honey water. He preferred that to oranges or watermelon. Poor guy. He did get to live with two females during his short life. One has curly wings and the other fell from her chrysalis. They both still try to fly away but they go right to the ground. I don't think they'll last much longer. I'm in New York. It's been getting colder at night.

9/14/2020 05:39:24 pm

Hi Jessica!
I just wanted to tell you that I have a butterfly that can't fly either. After much research and consulting with some experts, I believe she was injured as a baby by other cats and she suffered quite a bit of damage to her abdomen but she cannot fly so I've been taking care of her.
I have found that her favorite food is cantaloupe, I squeeze the juice out and put it in a little cap for her with a dab of Gatorade (for salt!) and she just loves it. Maybe you could try that as well as the oranges!
Thank you for taking care of them and not wanting to kill them. I can't bring myself to do it either yet so many tell me I should... sigh. ♡

Jacqueline Perez

9/1/2020 12:04:11 pm

Hello. I’ve let about 35 butterflied go. They were tagged. I have had about 20 more that weren’t tagged. So I’ve been busy. I also kissed about 15 cats to disease. The whole bunch got infected before I knew it. Happened in the blink of an eye. I was heart broken. Still am. I’m thinking here I am trying to help and look what I have done. I have a few monarchs that aren’t not doing so well. Noticed one today with its body leaking fluid so I separated it from the others. I also have one that I named wrinkles cause his wings are all wrinkled. But he still trying everyday to fly. I replaced two of his wings to see if he could fly. And he tries. The other one just lays there. When I go to see if he’s ok he wakes up and flutters but doesn’t fly. I e tried. He feeds well and flies great but then goes down like a torpedo. So I bra ughh him back in. I’m wondering if I should bring them inside because I
Live in Florida and it’s very humid because it’s been raining a lot lately. So I wonder if the humidity is preventing them from flying.

Thanks for your help.

9/1/2020 12:18:58 pm

I wonder if it’s OE. This is usually the case when they have wrinkled wings/can’t fly/ too weak. I also understand that Florida has much higher cases of OE. Worth looking into. Sorry for your difficulties and good luck!

Lisa

9/2/2020 09:38:15 pm

There is a stand that sells Monarch kits (caterpillar, milkweed leaves, and a special container) at the local farmer’s market, and our kids have had fun raising and releasing the butterflies. For variety, we decided to send away for one of those Painted Lady caterpillar kits. Those caterpillars seem to have had O. E., and most of the butterflies emerged severely deformed. We have kept the two Monarch caterpillars we currently have in a separate room away from the infected Painted Ladies, and are doing our best to prevent exposure. What should we do with the Painted Lady butterflies that have O.E.? Some can fly, but I’m not sure we should release them and risk transmitting the parasite. I don’t think I can bring myself to euthanize them by freezing. Should we just let them live out their lives in their mesh tent and clean well afterwards? The kids and I feel terrible for them. Thanks in advance for any feedback.

April

9/6/2020 11:14:30 am

My Monarch Caterpillars have started forming their Chrysalises. One formed today, and I noticed a single droplet of green liquid on the bottom of the chrysalis. Is this a sign of an issue? I can't find anything about this.

Marcia Whitehead

9/22/2020 04:17:54 pm

One of my monarchs has emerged from its chrysalis without a proboscis and missing a leg. I have been reading about deformities and their causes. How can I prevent contamination of my monarch eggs and milkweed leaves?. One film I watched on the computer talked about rinsing the eggs and leaves in a milk bleach bath. This is my first year raising monarchs, and I realize I have a lot to learn. How can I tell what has happened to my deformed monarch. I am heartbroken.

Susan

9/22/2020 06:57:46 pm

I have had Monarchs with proboscis issues. I thought one did not have a proboscis but when I put a drop of Fruit Punch Gatorade on my fingertip she/he finally unfurled it and started drinking. Gulp! I was thrilled and he was fine. I've also had one with a split proboscis that I had to eventually (heartbreakingly, using the freezer method) euthanize. She should be fine minus one leg; they are quite adaptable! Try tempting her with something wonderful to drink and perhaps you'll see she has a proboscis after all. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Brie

9/22/2020 08:57:55 pm

Just fyi, the photo of the dead caterpillar under the “Black Death” section actually shows a death resulting from tachinid fly infection: you can see the white strands in the photo, and also the caterpillar is hanging in J from its bottom, not in inverted V or I hanging from jts middle/last prolegs.

Monica Laine Kuykendall link

9/27/2020 01:12:49 pm

Hi so I collected 11 caterpillars in late August and they all formed their chrysalides and had 9 successful releases, well 1 is still in the container cause she is not flying yet but I stray from my question. So out of the other 2, 1 dropped about 12 hrs after forming and liquid came out of it and I tried to take care of it but it was a goner. The last one has turned a completely black or dark green color and has been this way for about 5 days now. Is there something wrong with it? I did some reading and I think it might be OE but i could be wrong. Can i save it or should I euthanize it if it is not already dead? This is my first time doing this so any advice would be so greatly appreciated.

Rebecca Fyfe

9/30/2020 08:01:50 pm

We have supported about 50 Monarchs this summer. Two that were not able to fly. After several days of attempts, we have them in our care. One can't move on one side of its body (male). A female I have had for almost three weeks has been eating and enjoying the sun in a habitat inside our house, but can't fly. I take her outside an sit her on flowers to nectar. One thing I have noticed is how fragile her front legs are and that she has lost a bit of her front leg so I am careful to let her crawl onto my hand and not pull her off of anything. It is fairly difficult to handle her without hurting her feet which attach to everything. If she is in the habitat all day and needs to eat I must take her down from the mesh to feed her because she will not eat on her own. But she is so fragile. I usually have her crawl onto a tissue. What is the best way to do this? Also, how can I tell if she is a 6-8 month Monarch from a 3 week Monarch? Birthdate? I am just curious. She was born the first or second week of September. Loves bananas, watermelon, and nectar. Also, she is very smart--has an playful personality, and I think she shows trust in me. She will sit on my shoulder, fly out two feet, and return to my shoulder. Is this something that others have experienced? I released four Monarchs and thought they would head south immediately, but they returned in the evening. Thank you!