Self-proclaimed 'cat lady' raising over 100 caterpillars to butterflies
Pictured above is Cindy Gordon, self-proclaimed cat lady, with two of her critter’s habitats. (Photo by Rachel Mergen)
Pictured is Cindy's daughter Savannah, who helps with the hobby, releasing one of the butterflies. (Submitted photo)
Pictured are the caterpillars in a variety of life stages. (Photos by Rachel Mergen)
By Rachel Mergen
Three years ago, Cindy Gordon started a new hobby, with the inspiration from local master gardener Donna Teynor and her classes at the gardens, that would change her life for the better, allowing for a learning and bonding experience for her and her daughter Savannah.
Cindy defines herself as a cat lady, but if entering the house, visitors quickly realize there is not a feline in sight. Inside, there is a bunny, along with more containers than most people would even take the time to count. Caterpillars make their homes within the containers, varying in size based on their stages of development. These containers, along with the care of Cindy and Savannah, raise the caterpillars' natural life expectancy on milkweed outside of 10 percent to over 90 percent.
In the beginning of her time in the hobby, she only cared for and released a few caterpillars. This year, her goal was to release at least 30 caterpillars, but this goal has been far exceeded.
Currently, in her home, Cindy cares for 104 caterpillars and 67 eggs.
“My favorite part is probably going out hunting them. I have a really hard time driving down the road, passing a patch of milkweed and not stopping. I usually have a bucket or something in my car to collect them,” Cindy noted.
The caterpillars go through four stages, Cindy explained. Cindy prefers to collect the caterpillars when they are still in their eggs, due to a smaller chance of disease and problems.
For example, if the caterpillars are hatched, they often have the chance of flies laying eggs on them and killing them.
When they are collected at a larger size, she quarantines them before adding them to the regular habitats, because she is unable to really know what happened to them in the first couple weeks of their lives.
The eggs will hatch after four days.
Following, the caterpillars will start their growth at only approximately a quarter of an inch. In the 14 days after the egg stage, the caterpillars will grow to two inches or larger, approximately the size of a pinky. Eventually, they will hook into a shape of a J in their containers for a day.
Next, the caterpillar forms a chrysalis, which takes approximately ten minutes. If not watching the holding container closely, Cindy explained, it is far too easy to miss the moment when the important event occurs.
For roughly ten days, the caterpillar is in its chrysalis turning into a majestic butterfly. The chrysalis will turn black the before it will hatch.
“All butterflies are born in the morning roughly around 9 o’clock,” Cindy said.
After this point, the butterflies are ready to go for their adventure outside. According to Cindy, tragically, only about one in a hundred monarch butterflies will be able to survive predators once outside.
“My daughter and I spend a lot of time together outside, instead of her sitting in front of a television or electronic gadgets,” she noted about her time bonding with Savannah. She explained that her daughter takes part in every stage of care for the caterpillars. She will collect the eggs, clean the cages, and give them fresh milkweed every day.
“She loves to release the butterflies,” Cindy added. “She loves to tell people about it.”
About her career away from her hobby, Cindy explained, “I’m a nurse by day, cat lady by night.” Growing up, she always wanted to be a neonatal nurse, a dream she achieved. She worked in La Crosse, driving back and forth from Prairie du Chien, for 11 years.
Eventually, she decided to simply be on call for La Crosse, while changing positions so she could work in Prairie du Chien instead.
Her coworkers are thrilled by her hobby. Once, she brought one of the eggs, the size of approximately a pinhead, that she collected into work. She remembered her coworkers barely being able to see the egg, which they named Fred, questioning where it was on the leaves.
A week later though, she returned with caterpillars, shocking her coworkers with how fast the creature had grown in the short period of time. The coworkers continued to be able to see the aging of the little caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly.
“I have sparked the interest of [some of my coworkers]. Actually a couple of the girls were hunting butterflies during lunch the other day,” Cindy noted. She enjoys being able see the looks on their faces when they find an egg, along with having the opportunity to answer any questions that they may have.
She often brings the caterpillars to show her neighbors, who ask her questions about growing milkweed.”
“I want to get the word out that the monarch population is hurting. It doesn’t cost a lot of money, any container will work for an egg. You release one, it will be one more for the population,” enthused Cindy.
