Many people know the milkweed as the plant that oozes a milky sap when the leaves or stems are cut.
They also know it as the plant with pods filled with many silk tufted seeds, which are dispersed by the wind when the mature pods split open. Many of these insects use the milkweed as a food source while others, like the ladybug beetles, use the milkweed as a convenient location to find prey animals. Crab spiders also find the clusters of milkweed flowers to be the perfect hiding place to ambush their prey. This works out especially well for them since milkweeds also attract so many different kinds of nectar seeking insects. Below is a table summarizing some of the most common insects that may be found on milkweed.