Lepidoptera Flourishes on Useppa - Or - If You Plant it They Will Come

The Useppa Island Butterfly Society originated several years ago when the island donated a sandy, unbuildable 1/3 acre plot to the care of islanders Colleen and  Craig Ligabell for a butterfly garden. When they departed three years ago, Judith Sear and I (that would be Karen)  took over its stewardship. 

Butterflies each have a specific plant or plant family they will lay their eggs on and can detect these from as far as five miles away. Could we attract more Florida specific butterflies to Useppa and encourage them to remain here? What began as simply keeping the partly developed site going turned into spread sheets identifying native flowering plants to reduce water usage, while cross referencing nectar versus larval plants in the correct proportion to attract less migratory butterflies that would happily reside on Useppa year round. This year was the big push.

      

        

Bamboo structures which had been built from island harvested stands were cleared, many having collapsed from the weight of 200 pound mature vines, coupled with the 40 and 50 MPH winds that can tear across the island. Gatewood Construction helped us to rebar and cement cedar trellises that we hope to have for many years to come. 

                          

Dutcman's pipe vine grew as rapidly as a couple of feet a day to quickly cover its trellis. The minute yellow eggs, the size of a pencil point, are the first sign of our success. Swallowtails search out pipevine as their preferred plant for laying clusters of eggs. The hatched larva/caterpillars remain in clusters as they quickly devour the vine's dense foliage.

                     

                            

Gulf Fritillary lay individual minute brown and tan eggs on the underside of passion vines. The Lady Margaret crimson colored passion vine boasts further evidence of success. The orange caterpillars "hatch" from the egg and quickly become the size of a nail's crescent. Voraciously eating the vine,  they will eventually grow black spikes and rapidly become over an inch long before curling up into a chrysalis from which a butterfly will emerge. These butterflies are native to the Gulf of Mexico, hence their name. Given the correct balance of larval and nectar plants, these hatchlings should stay with us on Useppa for generations to come. 

                         

The most rewarding aspect of the days dedicated to planning, planting, weeding, relocating plants, fending off gopher turtles that love our tender seedlings (don't get me started!) and repairing water lines, is sharing the garden with people of all ages. Young children either inherently know about caterpillars or must have read The Hungry Caterpillar, ever popular with the preschool set. Emerson, one of the island's full time children, visits with a Monarch caterpillar, happily munching on scarlet milkweed.

                         

It's us older folk that often have confusion about how the whole butterfly lifecycle works. Here's five of the seven stages we painted on stepping stones so that the the young people have a teaching tool for those that somehow missed hatching butterflies chapter at school. 

    

Having a garden has always been a dream of mine. As a New York City - and now Boston - girl, I thought I'd have to be content with pots and containers. Now I can spend days on end painting the landscape with color and structure that has purpose. (I know those of you that know me well are simply  shocked to hear that spreadsheets and highlighters  were involved in the creative process in creating this garden. It's just SO unlike me!) Do you think There is a graduate program that would certify me as a master gardener and lepidopterist while still obtaining an MFA? How many lives do we have? Come visit the garden.