Dying Mourning Cloak?

[Semjase]

>Subject: Dying Mourning Cloak?
>From: "Mark Cassino" cassino at net-link.net 
>Date: Sat, 16 October 1999 04:25 PM EDT
>Message-id: <3808df86$0$28088 at news.net-link.net>
>
>Yesterday I found a mourning cloak sitting on the sidewalk in front of my
>house.  It was cool and in the shade, so I moved it to a branch where it
>would get sun in the morning, with the expectation hat it would just fly
>away.  Today was unseasonably warm for October in Michigan (near 80 F) and
>sunny early on -- but the butterfly did not move and seems to be barely
>alive.
>
>I don't know much about butterflies (though I enjoy photographing them), so
>here's a couple of questions:
>
>First, I don't want to do anything to hasten this creature's demise, so is
>there anything that can be done to help it survive, or has it likely reached
>the end of its life span?
>
>Secondly, if it does die, I would like to try my hand at some high
>magnification photographic studies of the wing scales, and so would like to
>get the wings open.  Since I first found it, its wings are clasped tightly
>shut.  How would one go about opening them up?  (This would be assuming that
>it does not live.)
>
>Thanks in advance.
>
>MCC
Mourning Cloaks often fake death if handled. In your case it may be ill or
affected by some insecticide.  If it is still alive put it in an enclosure with
a moist overipe bananna or other such fruit and see if it will feed.

S.