A Note on Monarch Butterflies in Hawaii
Dot”s Thot: “After all, Hawaii is the best land. (O Hawaii no ka aina maikai) — Hawaiian Proverb [For more quotations see dailycelebrations ]
This is a memory, not a scientific note. I was happy to find the asclepsis I now grow in Orange County, California, because I could attract and then raise monarch butterflies in the yard. However, I yearned a bit for the larger milkweed plants of Hawaii that I knew as crown flower plants that bore either white or purple blossoms. Unsuccessful in locating these in the local nurseries, I was finally able to buy the smaller yelow/red-orange flowered butterfly plants that now peep up here and there in the yard.
Purple Crown Flowers (Calotropis gigantea) -- Image by Forest & Kim Starr
However, I thought I should mention the flowers I grew up knowing as the monarch butterfly caterpillar home. Upon searching on the internet, imagine my delight to find a treasure trove of such pictures. It brought back such memories and gave me happiness. Here are some pictures from “Forest & Kim Starr“. Please visit their site to see more gorgeous pictures.
I am ever so grateful that they made these pictures available for us to share. I sometimes feel homesick even while having lived away from home for a very long time. Born and raised in Hawaii, the islands are always home. Mahalo to the Starrs for having so much aloha.
There is a definite size difference in plants as well. I remember plants that towered over me — I am over 5 feet tall (by an inch). My little butterfly plants now are big when they reach over 3 feet high. Moreover, I am not able to make leis from the blossoms (too small), unlike the crown flowers of Hawaii. Those leis can be made in a variety of styles.
Crown Flower Leis (Image by Forest & Kim Starr)
The crown flower plants were attractive to the Monarch butterflies and the flowers fed the butterflies while the leaves nurtured the caterpillars. I first became attracted to the Monarchs because of the butterflies, but one day, I discovered the gorgeous turquoise-seafoam blue chrysalis with gold dots on them. (Hope I can locate mine and post pictures of those later this year.) It is in those moments that I feel the incredible beauty of nature and the universe. It is good to live on this lovely earth of ours. Let’s enjoy this round of butterflies together.
Aloha, Dot
Mahalo one more time to Forest & Kim Starr for sharing the images and information.
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