Post by bobw on Jul 22, 2017 16:24:21 GMT
Most tree feeding hairstreaks will lay quite happily on a sleeved tree of the foodplant. One method that I've used with quercus and which has worked very well is to cut a few sprigs of oak and remove most of the leaves; put them in a milk bottle with some water in (plug the top) and tie a net round the neck of the bottle covering the twigs. The twigs must touch the netting otherwise the females won't walk onto them. Introduce some females into the cage and they'll lay eggs on the buds. Be aware that they will lay a lot of eggs several layers deep if the sprigs aren't changed regularly. The main drawbacks with this method are that you will end up with a lot of eggs on each bud and they will have to be overwintered on dead wood which presents a risk of desiccation.
