Jasonbirder said:
I picked up a Silver Y on my way out of the house to work this morning....put it in a specimen pot in the garage to release on my return...On the walls of the pot are about a dozen tiny (1mm) white dots - am I right in assuming these are eggs?
If so any advice to rearing them - first question how do I get them out of the pot they`re stuck to the sides....
Hello Jason,
They certainly appear to be eggs from your description. I would leave them where they are, stuck to the side of your pot, usually after a week they will change colour, to brown or purple, this indicates the larva are about to hatch. Silver Y caterpillars are fairly omniverous and will eat many common low growing plants. Once the eggs have hatched and the larva removed you can scrape the remains of the eggshells from your pot. trying to remove them before they hatch will almost certainly damage them.
When they change colour, put into the pot one small leaf of
one of the following plants, Sheep Sorrel, Dock, dandelion or Knot-grass. When the larvae hatch they will move onto the food if it is in close proximity. Once they have started feeding, transfer the leaf into a small plastic box with a tight fitting lid. A plastic Petri dish will do. Each day put a fresh leaf into the box and the larva will move onto it, when all have moved to the fresh food, remove the older leaf and check it carefully to ensure all the larva have gone from it. If they seem reluctant to eat, try a leaf from a different plant species.
Every two days take the leaf with the larva on it and put it into a clean plastic box containing fresh food and wash out the used box ready for re-use. As they grow their will need to moult their skins so don't try and move them if they seem reluctant to move, this could kill them.
As they grow you may have to move them to a larger box and increase the food supply. Never put piles of foodplant into the box, this will only promote condensation within the box with the possibility of disease breaking out. Also keep them in a cool shady place, not in sunlight.
Silver Y's grow fairly rapidly and will be ready for pupation after four or five weeks or so. They will pupate quite readily in a plastic box with a gently crumpled tissue paper in it. There is no need to provide a soil pupating medium. Once pupation has taken place do not disturb them. Keep them in a cool shady place and check them daily after about 10 days. If you have done everything correctly you will soon see very fresh adult Silver Y's.
One additional tip, if you only have a small number of eggs, count them, after they hatch keep a check on the number of larva when changing food if the number changes you will know there is one or more missing, it's most likely on the old foodplant leaf. When small it's very easy to overlook a single larvae and throw it out.
Breeding even common species is very enjoyable. Have fun.
Harry
