Awhile back, we had a huge Fennel bush. It was in the butterfly garden so Swallowtails could use it as a host plant. The Fennel really took off and was a magnificent sight in its own right. One day we noticed a Swallowtail spending a lot of time in the Fennel. A mama was laying her eggs. And sure enough, soon we had dozens of caterpillars. We were thrilled.
We went out of town for the day, and the next morning, our caterpillars were nearly gone. Only a handful left. We looked everywhere for chrysalis’ hoping against hope. None. For more than a week we closely guarded the few remaining caterpillars by putting netting over the Fennel. We knew something ate our caterpillars. But what?
Then this guy showed up. I almost grabbed him to put in my debris heap when pruning. At first I thought it was a branch. Then I noticed it was a small snake. We called the local zoo and asked the Herpetologist what kind, since we did not recognize the markings. Turns out this is a baby Black Racer, a common type of snake in our area. And yes caterpillars can be on the menu, especially if they are easy pickings buffet style! So if you have a large Fennel plant, beware. You might find one of these guys lurking and hoping for a quick bite.
