New laid egg
Egg about to hatch
| RED ADMIRAL BUTTERFLY - Vanessa atalanta ( Linnaeus ) |
Both species spend the winter in warm southerly regions such as Florida or The Mediterranean and then migrate north in the Spring. Red Admirals appear to tolerate cooler winter conditions than the Painted Lady. However the Painted Lady will accept a wider range of caterpillar plant foods, whereas the Red Admiral is restricted to Nettle(Urtica)and Pellitory(Parieta) plants. The two species often occur together, although the Red Admiral is not so widespread in North America, maybe because Nettle is less common than in Europe. Both species are easy to breed, starting from eggs or young caterpillars, anytime between March and September. Click on photos below for larger images |
New laid egg |
Egg about to hatch |
 2nd instar caterpillar |
The green eggs are laid singly on the plant food, as shown above left. They are very tiny, less than 1mm, and strongly ribbed. The sharp spikes in the photo are stinging cells on the Nettle plant ( Urtica dioca). After 4-5 days the caterpillar has developed and may be seen inside the eggshell ( above right ). It has a blackish head and cream body when first hatched. This darkens as the caterpillar develops after the first moult. A caterpillar in the 2nd stage or instar is shown left. |
 4th instar caterpillar |
Using silk the caterpillar joins leaves together to make a resting tent, often going outside for yet another feed. In this way it quickly develops through a total of 4 instars. A full grown caterpillar is nearly black with a prominent yellow splash on the side of each segment ( see photo ). |
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The full-grown caterpillar hangs downward in the shape of a letter J and turns to a chrysalid. This normally takes place within a leaf tent
which has been opened up for the photo left. The chrysalid often possesses beautiful green and gold highlights, and in due course, usually in the morning, the butterfly emerges and expands its wings. Whilst the time to develop from young caterpillar to butterfly varies with temperature - the warmer the faster - the typical timespan at 70 deg F is 5 weeks. |
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