10/2/2023 0 Comments Rosy maple moth pinned![]() We’ll rear them in here, away from the threat of parasites, so we can repopulate the butterfly house next year with disease-free specimens.” “I also just gathered these eggs from the butterfly house,” she says, showing me a container of leaves, most of which are dotted by tiny reddish-brown spheres. We’ll have to construct a wall of bark for them.” That’s where mourning cloaks spend the cold months-burrowed under bark or woodpiles. “We’ll take these guys out to the butterfly house today, and then they’ll overwinter in the outdoor rearing house. The first two mesh cages contain mourning cloak butterflies-about 50 of which have just emerged from their chrysalides and are hanging upside down, Halloween-bat style, from the roof of the cage. “If you’re in here alone, it is a bit creepy,” laughs Butterfly House Specialist, Alicia Miller, as she gives me a tour of the rearing room. On tabletops around the room sit cages from which the only sound, if the room is quiet, is caterpillars noisily munching on leaves. ![]() Sound a bit intense and sci-fi-esque? Well, it is, in a way-especially when the rearing room is guarded by a large “Access is to Authorized Personnel Only” sign. Another necessary component of “importing” our New England neighbors is a USDA-certified rearing room. The vestibules are a necessary, added protection against winged-creature escapes and escapades. Built vestibules now flank the entrance and exit of the House, and if you’ve wondered why, it’s because we’ve brought in butterfly and moth species from other parts of New England. If you’ve spent time in our Native Butterfly and Moth House this summer, you’ve probably noticed some changes there.
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