Microscopic Killers - Ophryocystis electroskirrha

Disease is a nasty part of a butterfly's world. A glance at a Monarch butterfly will not always reveal whether it is diseased or not. Sometimes it takes a microscope to make that determination.


The touch of a piece of clear tape to the abdomen of a Monarch butterfly removes some of its scales. The loss of those few scales does not harm the butterfly. A look through the microscope shows us a world we cannot see with our naked eye; scales and more.   


One terrible disease that Monarch butterflies contract is Ophryocystis electroskirrha (OE). OE infection can be light to heavy. Heavy infection can cause the butterfly to die. Many Monarch butterflies in the wild live without problem with heavy OE infection. The photo above shows OE spores on and among a Monarch's scales. This Monarch was heavily diseased. The spores look like small dark footballs. A spore is, simply put, a disease seed. Under the right conditions it will 'sprout' and grow.


The only way caterpillars can contract OE is to swallow one or more spores. Over 100 spores can fit on one butterfly scale. A butterfly chrysalis or adult cannot contract OE although the adult is the carrier of the spores. The photo below is of a Monarch egg with one scale on it, left behind when the egg was laid. This one scale may have over 100 OE spores on it.



At a butterfly farm, farmers often wash Monarch eggs in a light bleach solution. This washing operation does not harm the eggs or caterpillars inside the eggs. It does kill OE spores. Because a hatchling caterpillar eats its eggshell, if a spore is on the egg and the hatchling swallows it, it will contract OE. If eggs are washed with a mild solution of bleach, the spores are killed.


The photo above is of OE spores in a light bleach solution. Bleach has killed some of the spores, breaching their cuticles and destroying the spores themselves.
This started me thinking of how many things in my life won't hurt me until I 'swallow' it. These things are all around me and it’s my choice whether to 'eat / swallow' them or not. The caterpillar doesn't have the knowledge that it is swallowing an OE spore and does not have a choice in the matter. I usually have the knowledge when I'm 'swallowing' something I shouldn't swallow.
I 'swallow' things that come from within me and from outside of me. What kinds of things do I find myself 'swallowing' that I shouldn't?
Unrighteous anger and resentment are two things that I ‘swallow’. These things come naturally into all our minds. A thought is like a spore. It is when I dwell on a bad situation that I have started 'swallowing' these 'spores'. Dwelling on a bad situation can cause that can create unrighteous anger or resentment. It is when I dwell on them that they start to grow inside me up to the point that they can take over my life. There is a righteous anger - and there is an unrighteous anger. Anger itself is not sin; it's the type of anger and what I do with it. (Psalm 4:4) I learned not to 'swallow' this by trying to make peace with people who tend to make me angry. If that does not work, I simply try to ignore their efforts to do whatever would make me angry. Once I refuse to 'swallow' anger and resentment, I find myself praying for the other person and it becomes hard to become angry and resentful at someone when I realize how much they need prayer. It also makes me aware of how graceful others have been when they prayed for me rather than becoming angry or taking offense.
Thanklessness is a horrible disease. When I go through my life without looking around and thanking others, I've swallowed the spore of thanklessness.
Pride can be another disease. Praise is not bad for any of us. It can help us as long as we realize that God is the only source of all good things. When we are obedient, we are acting as a part of the body of Christ. He is doing good things through us or giving us good things. Believing that anything good is of me and forgetting that anything good within me is from God, that is swallowing the spore. Praise is good as long as we keep it flowing, up to the right source, God. When I allow it to sit in me it will cause me to become diseased with this horrible 'disease'; unrighteous pride.


Mark 7 20-23
And he said, "What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."

Psalm 4:4
Be angry, and do not sin ...

They are what they eat; Cloudless Sulphur Butterfly Caterpillars

They say 'You are what you eat'. These caterpillars prove it to be true! Cloudless Sulphur caterpillars that eat green leaves of their host plant (Cassia and Senna plants) are green while caterpillars that eat the flowers of their host plant are the color of the flowers.




Part of the fun is that the markings on a caterpillar after it turns to yellow are different than when it was green. If it starts eating green leaves again, it will turn green again in a day or two. The markings change back to normal markings on a green caterpillar.



Even small caterpillars turn color when they eat blooms.




I've found this to be true in my mind. Whatever my thoughts are feeding on is what I become. If I am resentful and thinking of negative things, I become negative. If I am thinking of good things, I become happy and giving.

Some negative things are realities of life; the news is full of horrible happenings. To be aware of these things and to do what I can as well as pray for these situations is one thing. To dwell on them to the point that they make me depressed is another.

When negative things happen to me or people I love, it can be hard to not become negative. I found the key is to feed on positive things even in hard times. Some of the very positive things is heaven and Jesus.

When all else fails, I try to remember Romans 8:28. For those who love God, all things work together for good. That doesn't mean that I won't become terribly sick or even a quadriplegic. It doesn't mean that I won't lose someone (or several people) who are near and dear to me. What it means is that God will work through those things for good.

A wonderful day for me was when I realized that Psalms 23 doesn't say "You keep me from walking through the valley of the shadow of death" it says "even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death".

Even in that valley, God comforts me with the promise that all things are working together for the good and that heaven awaits those who love Him.

Psalms 23:4
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil,
for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.


Philippians 4:8
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Romans 8:28
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Butterfly Hair

While doing a presentation at a school in Ocala, Springs Elementary, I was asked by the students if butterflies had hair. I was totally stumped. New to butterflies, I had seen the 'hair' on lots of butterflies, including Monarchs (photo above) and Eastern Tiger Swallowtails (photo below). I was not sure what it was myself!



I had to admit that I didn't know exactly what the 'hair' was on a butterfly but I would certainly get back with them. My first step after arriving back home was to check my facts. I then wrote to the class to explain that no, butterflies do not have hair.

Instead, they have several types of scales and one of these types resembles hair.

This reminds me again of how easy it is for me to be fooled by things/people who are not what they seem to be.

And I am reminded to beware - I find myself deceiving myself sometimes, not wanting to face truth.

One thing for sure; anything that uses deception is not what I should embrace. God never uses deception. He IS truth.

II Cor 11 : 13-15
For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, fashioning themselves into apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for even Satan fashioneth himself into an angel of light. It is no great thing therefore if his ministers also fashion themselves as ministers of righteousness, whose end shall be according to their works.

I John 1:8
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and(V) the truth is not in us.

John 8 : 44-47
You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God."

John 14:6
Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

A Helping Hand

While gathering pipevine leaves to feed some caterpillars we had in the office, I found this caterpillar trying to slip its head into its silken girdle while preparing to pupate.

The problem was a wasp. The wasp was trying to kill the caterpillar. The caterpillar was trying to wiggle enough to keep the wasp from grabbing hold. Sooner or later the wasp would have won because the back prolegs of the caterpillar was already locked into its silk pad in preparation for pupation.

I broke the stem and brought in the caterpillar. As always, I stopped along the way to take photos (once the wasp had left). This photograph is one of my favorites; the caterpillar is preparing to slip its head and body into the silken girdle (loop).

It finished the job indoors ...



the caterpillar pupated normally ...



and emerged as a big healthy beautiful Pipevine Swallowtail butterfly.



I started raising butterflies nine years ago to save them from predators. It's a never-ending job. Nature does a good job of keeping butterfly populations in balance. If more than 2 out of 100 eggs in the wild lived to be an adult, we'd have problems driving down the road. But even with that knowledge, my gut reaction is sympathy for the caterpillar, not the wasp.

I know that I've saved tens of thousands of butterflies through intervention and farming. It feels good.

It makes me think of those who have saved me from natural and spiritual enemies and even from myself and my tendency to make bad choices.

But most of all, the Holy Spirit saves me from making bad choices and Jesus saved me from the natural consequences of the bad choices I made in spite of being told that they were bad choices.

What a beautiful word; 'save'.

WHAT are these???

God has such an imagination. This little green critter is being held between my thumb and first finger. It's about 1 inch long.



Another such tiny critter is this one that resembles a seal.



Now for a look at the entire 'seal'.



After emerging as an adult, this 'seal' is actually a Tropical Checkered Skipper butterfly.



I often wonder if God is grinning when I 'discover' another of his little jokes. So many bits of information about butterflies and moths are totally fascinating and can be somewhat confusing to a human mind.

Adult butterflies have two eyes and see pretty well. Caterpillars have twelve eyes and see light and dark. So where is the sense in that?

Add these items to the fun things God has hidden in his handiwork:
* Caterpillars that look like bird droppings
* Caterpillars with fake eyes
* Butterflies whose 'tail' looks like a head
* Caterpillars and chrysalises that create 'anti-freeze' so they can live through below freezing temperatures for weeks and months
* Chrysalises that look exactly like broken twigs

Isn't it great to know that God has such an imagination? No matter where I go when I wander, no matter what species of butterfly or moth I find, there is always something to make me laugh.

I thank God for giving us something so original to laugh at ... His wonderful handiwork.

Stephen was reading today about creation, "For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God." Romans 1:20

Apples

Some butterflies enjoy fruit. This Viceroy discovered the apple hanging less than 30 minutes after it was first hung in the tree.



Question Mark butterflies also enjoy apple. This one was offered a slice of apple and decided it was supper time.

Many people have been taught that Eve ate an apple in the Garden of Eden. Truth is, we don't know if she ate any apples or not. I assume there were apple trees in the Garden of Eden. Apples are mentioned nine times in the bible, but not actually mentioned as growing in the Garden of Eden.

But what Eve did eat was the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. That tree was growing in the middle of the garden. Before God made Eve, God had told Adam not to eat from that tree.

The fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was never named.

The crafty serpent asked Eve ... uh ... let's stop a minute. Have you thought about what life must have been like for Even to calmly stand and talk to the serpent? First, it talked to her. About that time I'd be checking myself into a mental hospital. She just calmly carried on a conversation with the serpent.

The Bible tells us that Eve ate of the fruit and also gave some to Adam. Now I used to think of this as Adam not knowing where the fruit came from but I realized after reading this historical account again (Genesis 2 and 3) that the account reads, "She also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate it". So obviously Adam knew what was going on.

Like his mode of operation, the serpent told a bit of truth, "For when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil". He also added in a bit of untruth, "You will not surely die".

Satan is a whiz at taking a bit of truth and mixing it in with a bit of untruth to make the whole thing untrue. He also deceives me the same way he deceived Eve.

After eating of the fruit, Adam and Eve did know good and evil.

Adam and Eve used the same means of defending themselves that we still use today.

Adam's excuse: When God asked Adam, "Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?", Adam responded, "It's not my fault, it's all your/her fault". Oh, you want the Bible's words? "The woman you put here with me - she gave me some fruit from the tree and I ate it." Translation: YOU gave her to me (it's your fault) and SHE gave it to me (and it's her fault too) (and it's not my fault at all, I'm the victim).

Eve's excuse: When God asked Eve, "What is this you have done?" she responded, "I was deceived, it's not my fault, it's all his fault". Reading the NIV it's worded, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate".

So I have several lessons to remember when I see an apple:
1. It wasn't an apple in the Garden of Eden that Eve and Adam ate.
2. Satan uses truth and mixes it with a lie. Truth + lie = all lie
3. It's never the other person's fault when I make a bad decision. It's my fault.
4. I need to love God so much and have a good relationship with him so that I will never want to disobey God.

Eye see what?

Eyes are deceiving. This blue headed caterpillar is an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly 'child'. When it 'grows up' it will be a fantastic butterfly!



As an adult, it sees through compound eyes, hundreds of everything. We see just one of everything. (We SHOULD see just one of everything!)

But the caterpillar ('child' stage) of the butterfly sees things quite different. The photo below shows its six eyes on just one side of its head. Yes, six eyes on each side of its head. The 'eyes' you see are not eyes but skin spots. It's eyes are on the sides of its little sky blue head.



A butterfly sees hundreds of every object. Caterpillars discern only light and dark.

When Paul wrote a letter to the Christians at Corinth, he spoke of Satan who blinds the eyes of people so they can't see the glorious light. Unlike the caterpillar, these people can't even see light at all.

John shared his knowledge that God IS light. The neat thing is that where there is light, there can't be darkness. The deepest darkness is broken by a single match or candle. If there is light, the caterpillar can discern it.

2 Cor:4
"Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God."

I John:5-7
" This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin."