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Monarch Butterfly;
Milkweed Butterfly Danaus plexippus Family: Nymphalidae Order: Lepidoptera |
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North American
monarch butterflies arrived in Hawaii between Monarch butterflies have a very short life of six to eight weeks and go through a complete change called metamorphosis in what looks like four distinct stages - egg, larva, pupa, adult.
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Egg - the size of a pinhead with longitudinal ridges is usually laid on the underside of a new leaf near the top of a milkweed plant (like the crown flower, balloon plant, or butterfly weed). |
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1841 and 1852
following the establishment of the milkweed (Asclepias curassavica),
their primary host plant. The crown flower (Calotropis gigantea),
and the balloon plant (Gomphocarpus physocarpus) also serve
as hosts. This orange butterfly is recorded on all the main Hawaiian
Islands, with a white form on O`ahu and in Kona, Hawaii, and a rare brown
form on Kaua`i. 