Female Oviposition Techniques > Brown Bag
Females from some species of butterflies do not necessarily need a lot of light to trigger oviposition. Placing a live fritillary female with dead violets and a nectar source oftentimes works well.
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Spyeria cybele letona female
Here is a photo with the female in the sack. Inside the sack in a dried violet and a nectar source. Female fritillaries will usually lay many eggs on the sack or on the dried violet; trying to conceal the eggs near the flap of the lunch sack as much as possible.
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Brown Bag Method
Female Speyeria are content to usually lay eggs on the interior of a lunch sack if they come in contact with dead violet leaves. The life history of Speyeria is somewhat unique in that the larval hostplant is tends to be dried up by the time the adults fly. Females who oviposit look for where the plant was and lay eggs haphazardly around it. The unfed first instars then diapause until the next spring. This makes the brown bag method effective for fritillaries.
