Caterpillars Grow and Grow and Grow and Grow

Butterfly caterpillars grow and grow and grow.



These caterpillars grow about 2,800 times the weight they were when they hatched.



If they don't eat enough, they'll not grow as large. The photo below shows two chrysalises; one ate plenty and grew large. The other one didn't eat enough and didn't grow as large. Both emerged as beautiful adult Monarch butterflies. (Note: the word 'cocoon' isn't the proper term for a butterfly pupa).



Several things can keep a butterfly or moth caterpillar from growing to it's full potential:
1. Not enough food available (early frost, too many caterpillars, too early in spring for the food to grow fast enough to keep up with the demand)
2. Temperatures too cold (late fall and early spring) for the caterpillars to be active and eat well
3. Disease; sick caterpillars often lose their appetites
4. Too crowded; too many caterpillars on the same plant and they keep bumping each other or even purposely knocking each other off their plant
5. Plant losing it's nutrition (plant pests draining leaves of nutrition, drought)
6. Plant tasting wrong (spray on the leaves that change the taste, plant pests leaving a large amount of excrement on which sooty mold grows, strong fertilizers or other nutrients/chemicals drawn up by the roots into the leaves)
7. An older caterpillar becoming 'lost' and cannot find the host plant again to continue eating
8. And many other reasons!

It's sad to see a small version of a butterfly that we know is much smaller than normal. We know that something happened to cause it to be so much smaller than normal.

It will be mature; just much smaller than it's potential mature size.

But it's great to see that it did live to become an adult, even if it has not reached its full potential! If it doesn't have enough nutrition, it will starve to death and cannot become an adult. Sometimes it will become a chrysalis but doesn't have enough strength / life to finish developing to become an adult; an additional week or more as a chrysalis.

Quite often I look at myself and see that I am much 'smaller' or less mature than I should be. At 53, as a Christian for my entire life, I should have matured far beyond what I have to date. As a 53 year old 'newborn' Christian, I wouldn't expect so much out of myself - but as I said, I'm not a 'newborn' Christian. I was blessed to be raised in a Christian home where God was first - PERIOD.

Self-control is part of the fruit of the Spirit. So are the eight other attributes that I don't like to look at too close. Sigh. It takes a long time for this fruit to grow in me! Some parts of this fruit are more more developed than others.

I think about love and my first reaction is, 'Sure, I have love'. Then I remember that Jesus said that we are to love our enemies. Well, maybe I really don't have love in the sense Jesus used the term. It's easy to love those who love me. 'Full-grown' love is one that loves enemies as well as friends and loved ones. The love Jesus talks about is an action, not a feeling. We can't command our feelings but we can command our actions.

Joy; yes-sir-ree, I have joy! Then things go 'wrong' and I lose that 'joy'. But then I realize that I often mix up joy and happiness and yes, I do lose my happiness but I always have had the joy that God puts inside me. Hopefully, I'll never be tested with really rough times and have my fruit of joy tested.

Peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness ... each one of these parts of the fruit of the Spirit needs to grow to its full potential within me.

How do I grow this fruit to the right 'size'? As I think about it, I realize that this fruit grows the same way as a caterpillar grows, but feeding on the right food. If the Spirit of God is within me, my spirit grows and the fruit will grow.

I can be less than the potential God intends me to be; it's up to me. I can feed on the Word of God and by spending time talking to God, thanking God, asking God to grow me. Or I can ALL spend my time doing other things without taking time for God.

So what is my excuse:
1. Not enough food available? There is plenty for me to feed upon. I can't claim this excuse.
2. Conditions not suitable for me to be active and eat well? No, once again, conditions are perfect - I'm not always as active and feeding on the right things out of my laziness. Not an excuse.
3. Disease; hmmm - could I be allowing myself to become 'diseased' by allowing things to grow in me that shouldn't? Things like worry, lack of faith that God is in control, or other 'diseases'? Not an excuse.
4. Too crowded; no - I have plenty of time alone to read and study God's word and to talk with God in prayer. Not an excuse.
5. Plant losing it's nutrition; absolutely not. God's word does not change. Nothing can alter it's 'nutrition'. Not an excuse.
6. Plant tasting wrong; well, my attitude can cause problems with the taste but the taste of God's word is always good. But if I've become immersed in myself and don't want to listen to God's word because it will reveal my faults (as it should) then yes, it will taste 'wrong' because of my taste buds, not because of the 'taste' of God's word. Not an excuse.
7. Becoming 'lost' and cannot find food; God's word in this country is always nearby. God is always with me. I can choose to walk away but God will never leave me. Not an excuse.
8. And many other reasons - but none of them can I claim as an excuse for myself to not have enough to eat and grow as I should.

Even if I do not fully 'mature' or 'grow', I am still a child of God, like a smaller than normal adult butterfly is still an adult butterfly. But I am robbing myself and others if I don't feed properly to fully grow and mature.

It's past time for me to start 'eating' heartily in the spiritual sense. I thank God that there is always enough spiritual nutrition at hand for me to grow and produce fully 'grown' and mature fruit of the Spirit.

Galations 5: 22, 23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, self-control;


Matthew 5: 43 -
Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy: but I say unto you, love your enemies, and pray for them that persecute you;

Ugly Beginnings

Imagine finding what looks like a little pile of caterpillar frass (poop) on a leaf. You turn over the little pile and find a pupa of either a butterfly or moth. What an odd place to find such a thing! Looking at the above photos, who would ever guess that something beautiful could come from this nasty little pile?

When I found this little pupa, I brought it home and kept it secure until the moth or butterfly inside emerged. I had no idea what species was inside, developing it's mature wings and body.

Imagine my surprise when I found the beautiful small green moth that emerged one day. This little moth resembles a butterfly with it's posture; wings upright over its back.




I started thinking about how much beauty comes from 'ugly' things. Our human judgement is not commendable.


This caterpillar is also considered 'ugly' ....


... and so is this chrysalis. The caterpillar has lumps, bumps, and not much beautiful about it. The chrysalis is also brown and lumpy.

















Yet the Red-spotted Purple butterfly that develops from this caterpillar and chrysalis is a real beauty. One would never dream that such beauty could come from this brown lump of a chrysalis.
















This time of year we think of a spot that was also very disgusting to our human minds. A spot where animals were kept; with smells from animals and the smells of fresh manure of those animals very present. The word 'manger' brings images of clean beautiful surroundings, fresh hay, clean little lambs and donkeys, such as we see in 'manger' scenes and paintings. But lets look at the truth; even when a stable is cleaned regularly, it definitely keeps the smell of manure.

Now imagine the stable on the night that Jesus was born. There were so many people in Bethlehem that the inn was full. There arrived a man and a woman who was so far advanced in her preganacy that she delivered her baby that night. The inn was so full that the only option she had was the stable. This stable must have been filled with animals that people rode as they traveled to Bethlehem; remember that the town was full of people who came to register for the census.

No matter how many times the stable was cleaned, it simply must have been dirty when Mary was giving birth to Jesus. So many people had traveled to the town that the inn was full. Their animals would have been in stables. A very real fact about animals is manure. No matter how often a stable is cleaned, it will be dirty.

The smell of dirty sweaty animals must have been heavy. Mary's feet must have been dirty with manure as she walked through the stable. Joseph must have cleaned an area for Mary to lie down and to give birth to the baby that they both knew was far from an 'ordinary' baby. Angels had talked to each of them privately, months before. I can't believe that Joseph would have allowed this baby to be born in the midst of dirty animals and manure if he had any other option.

We can't know what it was really like; how many animals, how bad it smelled, how much manure was on the floor, what the surroundings were for this woman to give birth to her son. But it had to be dirty by our standards of living quarters, let alone a delivery room.

But we do know that the truly most beautiful thing ever to enter this world was our saviour, Jesus Christ. The son of God - who came from surroundings we humans consider 'ugly'.



Matthew 1 : 18 - 21
This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly. As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

Luke 1 : 26B - 38
God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!” Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel[e] forever; his Kingdom will never end!” Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.” The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.

Luke 2 : 1-7
At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire.(This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.)All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant. And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them. Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her.

Luke 2 : 15 - 16
When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger

Spider Webs & Butterflies

Spider webs are sad for butterflies. Many butterflies lose their lives in spider webs.

A few days ago I walked into an area of the garden and saw this sight; a Viceroy butterfly caught in a spider web. As usual, my camera was strapped to me and I stopped to take a photo. I reached up to remove the web and realized this Viceroy was still alive! I gently removed the webbing and let it fly. No problem; it was READY to go! Normally the butterfly is struggling and I know it is alive without touching it.

I thought about all the butterflies I find in webs that are dead; obviously dead.



As I thought about the butterfly over the next fews days, I thought about all the butterflies that struggled to get loose and either was killed by the spider or, if the web was old, just starved in the web. Yes, they're 'just insects' but I have a strong emotional attachment to these winged beauties! I always am thrilled when I know that I saved one.

'Saved' one. I keep thinking how Christians use words that people who did not grow up in a Christian church or family have trouble understanding. Christian terms are often like a foreign language. 'Saved' is a Christian term, too.

Christians say, "I'm saved" and to those who don't understand Christian language, it sounds very odd. What are we saved from? How are we saved?

Having grown up in a Christian home where God was as real as anything else in this world, I was kept from a lot of things that many people have had to battle. But even so, I was born with a carnal nature; selfish and without thoughts for God or others. People ask me about that; what do I mean that I was born selfish? The answer is simple. Watch any child. 'Mine' is often the first word a younger child learns. Older siblings tend to take their toys because the younger one isn't strong enough to hold on to it. Older siblings often clearly show that selfish 'me' nature.

Selfishness is normal; for most children, sharing is a taught action.

A child that doesn't throw a temper tantrum, doesn't take what doesn't belong to her, that does her chores, that never lies, that .... well, the list goes on ... that child doesn't exist. Every child has to learn to fit into society and live by the rules of unselfishness. That's the carnal nature that we are all born with. Yes, some are naturally more generous than others but even so, every one is born with the 'me' attitude.

I'm thankful that I have been 'saved'. Once I was old enough to understand about God and Jesus, I had the choice of turning from the nature that was natural in me and to ask for forgiveness and ask God to lead me for the rest of my life. Learning to leave the old nature behind was/is a slow process. Even now, at 53, I find the old nature is still here. (Especially when chocolate is around! Grin) But I know that God will welcome me when I die - to join him for eternity. Things will be the way HE intended it from the beginning!

I'm thankful for the one who 'saved' me.

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'.