Hello there
I have been emailing you – you have requested tags but you haven’t logged your address in your profile, so I can’t send them to you. Can you please log in, put your address into your profile, and then request tags again.
About the funeral. The butterfly will know whether it should fly away or not – and it certainly won’t harm it to take it along to the funeral.
The recommended way to pick it up is to put your finger in front of, and below, its head and it will probably walk onto your finger. Put it into a small box or basket – just big enough to spread its wings. Plastic is not recommended because it won’t be able to grip the sides. Take it to the funeral – open the lid at the appropriate time outside, and in as warm and sheltered a position as you can: maximum sunlight, maximum shelter from any wind. If it’s warm enough the butterfly will fly away.
Hope that helps.
Just gently pick it up, or put your finger right in front of it and it may walk onto your finger.
If you need to pick it up, hold it gently near its body with its wings closed.
Or have a look at Jacqui’s post here in the Forum called “How to tag a Monarch butterfly”. It includes the link to a short video which shows Jacqui handling a butterfly.
thanks Carol, what is the best way to get it from the plant into the hamper as the plant is too tall to be covered by the hamper?
The laundry hamper will be fine to transport your butterfly in.
If the weather is cool, the butterfly won’t fly away and will probably be happy to perhaps sit on someone’s finger until it decides it is warm enough (or hungry enough) to fly away.
Maybe a small posy of nectar flowers for it to feed on until it’s ready to fly?
PS I am in Dunedin and forecast is for a high of 17 degrees C but the funeral is to happen at 10.30am and it probably wont have got that warm by then.
