Female Oviposition Techniques > Small Squat Tub
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Hesperopsis alpheus in Squat Tub
Steve Spomer once showed me this method for getting sootywing females to oviposit and it turned out to be quite helpful. Simply place some sprigs of saltbush (Atriplex canescens) into a squat tub and the female will likely lay eggs on the plant or on the side of the container.
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Hesperopsis alpheus II
Here is the same setup with lid on. Expose container to indirect sunlight.
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Arrowhead blue
Here is a photo of an arrowhead blue laying eggs in a squat tub on Lupens. Arrowhead blues can be stubborn to lay many eggs in captivity; but the female pictured did lay a few eggs using this setup.
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Callophrys sheridani female
Photo of a sheridan's hairstreak ovipositing on buckwheat (Eriogonum racemsosum). Callophrys sheridani females seem willing to lay eggs if exposed to alternate light and dark conditions. One day at work, I collected a sheridani during a lunch break; set her up near a light source, and then alternated placing her near that light source for 15 minutes and then placing her in a dark drawer for 15 minutes. It seems the change of luminosity triggers movement for these butterflies. She ended up laying roughly 20 eggs using this setup.
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Callophrys sheridani II
Photo of a female sheridan's hairstreak with the Squat Tub lid off.
