Painted Lady Butterfly (Vanessa Cardui)

Is anyone using these as a feeder?
Anyone want to share breeding info and recipies?

Painted Lady are very common where I live (heck, where most people live). Im already seeing them beginning to show up around here. I catch and offer these to my mantids every year. For no particular reason, I havent offered them to the chameleons much. But Im thinking of doing so this year, just for kicks, if I can breed them easily.

I do not wish to buy "butterfly kits" as I think they are a rip off. Prefer home made so I know what exactly is in the food.

This is what I believe I can safely feed the larva: mallow, hollyhock, sunflower, coreopsis, daisy. I wonder if there is anything else. I wonder what is in those commercial kits?

And for the butterflies: watermellon, banana, sugar water, fresh orange juice, coreopsis flower nectar, mallow nectar, Hollyhock nectar.

I feed my chameleons these in the summer, I feed the larvae mallow and the butterflies banana and watermelon.

sandrachameleon said:

Is anyone using these as a feeder?
Anyone want to share breeding info and recipies?

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Absolutely. My chameleons get quite crazy over this.
I am trying to breed them right now. So, I am not sure I could offer the best advice.
But, the larvae is pretty easy to care (just like hornworms and Silkworms).
Only different is I would get a small plastic cup and smear the side of the cup with the wet food (available commercially). 1 larvae per cup.
I close the lid, and wait for them to turn into a chrysallis. I don't bother cleaning the frass (that is why I smear the food on the side of the cup, instead of the bottom -this will minimize the frass from touching the food).

Once they grew up, they will wonder the top, attach itself to the plastic lid, and become a cocoon.
Take out the lid and glue them to the screen cage. Add some vertical stick for the butterfly to dry their wings.
And, get some hollyhocks plant and put it in the cage.
Soon, they'll lay the eggs on the leaves.

nevermind. I have seen those all of the time, I should try using those too.

dodolah said:

...smear the side of the cup with the wet food (available commercially).

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Any idea what's in that commercial wet food?
Id like to make my own

sandrachameleon said:

Any idea what's in that commercial wet food?
Id like to make my own

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if you have hollyhocks plants, thistles (Asteraceae), and mallow (Malvaceae). I think you can feed them the leaves and perhaps the flowers as well.
If I am not mistaken, all of the above plants are not toxic...

the name " Painted Lady Butterfly" sounds way too pretty to be used as a feeder insect!

dannigrrl said:

the name " Painted Lady Butterfly" sounds way too pretty to be used as a feeder insect!

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how bout cabbage white butterfly?

dodolah said:

how bout cabbage white butterfly?

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mmmmmm yummy

sandrachameleon said:

mmmmmm yummy

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I need some of these!

I'm assuming the larvae are fine to feed as well?

buddhacham said:

I'm assuming the larvae are fine to feed as well?

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Vanessa Cardui Larvae has spiky hairs.. I am assuming it would be an irritant for your chameleon. So, I never feed the larvae to my chameleon (plus, they are quite small).

dodolah said:

how bout cabbage white butterfly?

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Can't wait for the mass move of Painted Ladys flying up from Mexico soon. I also feed Cabbage whites. There almost year round here. Here's a video of hand feeding of Cabbage white.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxpFwRJm5Yw

I'm just curious...Does anyone know if there are any harmful/poisonous butterflies that should "not" be fed to a cham???? Cause I do feed mine all kinds of moths and butterflies in the summer.

lots

JaxyGirl said:

I'm just curious...Does anyone know if there are any harmful/poisonous butterflies that should "not" be fed to a cham???? Cause I do feed mine all kinds of moths and butterflies in the summer.

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Pipevine Swallowtail, Gulf Fritallary, and Monarchs, to name a few.

DGray said:

Pipevine Swallowtail, Gulf Fritallary, and Monarchs, to name a few.

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Yep. Part of the Painted Lady's defense is that it looks like a Monarch, which most predators recognize as poisonous.

I think you'd be better off, or rather your chameleon would be better off, if you fed it only those butterflies you know to be safe, rather than trying to get a list of those that are known to be unsafe. Sometimes all it might take is one wrong bug for bad results.

sandrachameleon said:

I think you'd be better off, or rather your chameleon would be better off, if you fed it only those butterflies you know to be safe, rather than trying to get a list of those that are known to be unsafe. Sometimes all it might take is one wrong bug for bad results.

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Sandra, do you have a list you could provide? That would be so helpful.

Last spring was fun for my cham. I made a thread where some people offered some insight. Additional reading here!

SSimsswiSS said:

Can't wait for the mass move of Painted Ladys flying up from Mexico soon. I also feed Cabbage whites. There almost year round here. Here's a video of hand feeding of Cabbage white.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxpFwRJm5Yw

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Where did you get the buttflies?