Leopard Lacewing eclosed

After lunch I went back and find that my Leopard Lacewing had eclosed. Out came the camera and everything. This time I endeavoured to do a real good direct shot of my butterfly. I had tape the vine firmly to the box beforehand. I tipped the box slowly on its side taking care not to alarm the butterfly in the slightest way. And, yes, I succeeded! I tipped the box upright again. No alarm caused. I left it. It wasn't ready to fly.
Four hours later, it sure didn't look ready to me. It hadn't stirred from the same perch. Kumari went near to take a look. The alarmed butterfly flapped its wings and dropped from its perch. A spot of red appeared. One wing got glued to the wet meconium it had passed out. I let it grab a pen and put it back on the vine. Half an hour later it was still hanging on, but after my dinner and six hours after eclosure, it fell on its back again. This time it couldn't get up:-(

Privileged

Dehong visited me last evening with a bag full of gifts. I only opened it this morning. I got an emoticon freshly baked bun - a stress reliever......am I so stressed? O.K. I admit, yes, easily so too, an Illusion Science kit......interesting, and a box of bird's nest..... I am touched. This is one brother who thinks I need bird's nest and goes ahead to pamper me with it. I feel old and privileged.
Privileges were given to us when we signed up for NLB Project Deliver Me - a programme whereby NLB volunteers would deliver library materials to those who have difficulty visiting the library themselves. I was one of those privileged under MDAS to take part in its pilot. Project Deliver Me kicked off this year. NLB volunteers delivered our library books this morning and took away the dued items. I didn't managed to finish reading the book, "Winter World" by Bernd Heinrich. I put it down in the list of books to borrow the next round.
Gan's rather surprise visit gave me another reason to feel privileged and keep smiling. He popped in at 2 plus with a tank containing Leopard Lacewing caterpillars. Leopard Lacewing is a bright colourful butterfly that is becoming more common in Singapore. The larva feeds on the passionfruit plant. Gan gave me one of the three caterpillars in the box. He put some of its foodplant into my box too. We had two passionfruit plants growing on the fence behind the boys' rooms. However when I take Gan to the plants, I realised the plants were no longer there. They had been uprooted by the contractors recently to make way for the new fencing. The old Community Club next door had been brought over by the Anglicans and is now undergoing construction to turn it into a family service centre. While I worry and fret over the caterpillar's food, Gan, in his experience, assured me that there is nothing much to worry about. The caterpillar was near pupaton.

The Palm King eclosed

Amathusia phidippus phidippus (Palm King)

=) My first time looking at this in real life. And wow, it's a big butterfly compare to the many medium and small butterflies I've ever kept. This one, with its wings folded, could just about cover the surface area of my palm. (Hmm? That puts a new meaning to its name.) It had climbed higher above the exuvia (the empty chrysalis case) to allow itself wing expansion space. So much for my worrying through the night whether I should have prop the thing higher. I woke up early and couldn't get back to sleeping excited to see the eclosure in process. But all I could do was lie and wonder about it on the bed until the morning shift staff came to put me out of bed at 6.45 a.m. The Palm King was out before I was up. Its bands of chocolate milo, creamy white and coffee milk colours conjured a delicious image of tiramisu cake in my mind. Once again, I give thanks to our Creator for delighting us with the creation of these beautiful insects. He created a myriad of creatures and took great care to put in the finest detail, down to every scale, down to every cell.

How many are your works, O LORD!

In wisdom you made them all;

the earth is full of your creatures. --Psalm 104:24

A Palm King 'ripens' and brought back at last

Here's a picture of us.
That's me with Peng Mun beside me and his brother, Joseph Loke, who had came to visit. Joseph had brought along his camera and is keen to get some shots taken. Here's my opportunity to get a Palm King pupa shot in its natural surrounding. I led him outside the Home where the underpass is.

A big green caterpillar had pupated on the ceiling of the underpass near our Home. When I found out that it was a pupa of a big Palm King butterfly, I was determined to get it. In my enthusiasm, I had failed to take into account that the chrysalis is filmly attached to the cement ceiling by the caterpillar's strong silk. In the process of collecting, I regretfully caused the demise of the to-be-butterfly. What followed was a half hour spent mournfully in Chong Boon Park with Peng Mun trying his best to console me to no avail. Enroute home, I looked around and, to my consolation, found another chrysalis on the palm tree near the underpass. This time, I left it where it was but returned everyday to check on it. This morning, when I go to check on it, I took note of the colour change. The part of it where its compact folded wings are is begining to show up with a distinct colour from the rest of the body, a clear sign that the butterfly is ready to eclose the next day. If I don't bring the chrysalis home with me, I'd never be able to catch the butterfly itself. Up till today I have only seen pictures of this butterfly and have yet to see one in real life.

After some pictures are taken, Joseph readily returned with a container and a pair of scissors. The object of my attention was snipped from the tree and brought to my room. Now then, begins my eager wait for the morning.

Becoming butterflies

These are beautiful. I had watched them grow. Sometimes I got them from egg.
Above, from left to right, is the Common Mime, the Malayan Eggfly and the Common Mormon.
The Malayan Eggfly caterpillar was given to me by a friend, Gan from Nature Society.