Subject: Re: wanted plans for butterfly house

From: [email-masked] (Riley Foster)
Date: 18 Jan 1995 15:20:14 GMT

THE BUTTERFLY GARDEN by Matthew Tekulsky gives dimensions for butter-
fly hibernation boxes. My father made me 3 wich he lined with bark 
slabs so their feet can cling. The real question is how well do the
hibernation boxes work. I've put mine out for 3 winters now but have
never climbed up on a ladder to peer down inside to see if there's any
inhabitants. The bottom of the box is supposed to be 4 ft from the 
ground. In IL there's only about 3 species that overwinter as adults-
Comma, Mourning Cloak & Question Mark. Of the 3, the last is the most
prevalent in my garden. I even put out piles of rotting fruit in the fall
to attract the butterflies that might use the boxes. If you do put out
hibernation boxes, they should be taken down in the late spring or early
summer or else they will be wasp boxes & provide nesting spots for a 
very fearsome caterpillar predator.
-- 

          "The more necessary anything appears to my mind, the more
           certain it is that I only assert a limitation."

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From: Bill Terrill <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 28 Jan 95 16:37:12 -0500

Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain Ga. is and excellent source for information
They will respond to just about any request for Butterfly info. Contact them
at : Callaway Gardens
         POB 2000
     Pine Mountain, Ga.
                    31822-2000
 You might also try getting in touch with your local Nature Conservancy
Volunteer Stewardship program. Butterfly monitoring is a very important part
of their stewardship programs since a butterfly is host specific for reproduct-
ion purposes.