Chrysalis!

When the monarch caterpillar has completed 5 instars (molting due to growth), it will usually wander away from the milkweed and find a spot to transform into chrysalis.  This picture is nice because it shows one of our little guys after about the 3rd instar.  The larger one below probably after the 4th or 5th.  It is hard to keep up with them.  All of this growth happens within about 10 days.  They go from about 1mm to about 2 inches!

When we had caterpillars before, we would have to search the whole screened porch to locate the chrysalis because it usually happened when we were not there.  Many  times it was under a piece of furniture.  This time we were blessed as the caterpillar stayed on the milkweed.


Before the caterpillar transforms, it will attach its rear to an object using silk like threads.  Once that is secure, it will hang down in a "J" formation.

 He is still rather tightly curled in this photo, but soon he will hang into a clear "J" form, the antenna will go limp and he will gradually transform into a chrysalis.  After that the last molt occurs revealing a "jewel of nature in jade and gold".  (I borrowed that phrase from Anna Comstock's book).  :-)

The black clump you see is the shed skin.  This process is hard to catch live unless you are dedicated solely to watching the guys.  Here is a link if you'd like to watch the process.  It is fascinating to me.

Caterpillars Day 3

It is so much fun to come out each morning and see how big these guys have grown.

This guy was only .5 cm, now he is about 1.5cm!
As the caterpillars grow, they must molt their skin.  Each stage is called an instar and there are 5 instars  before changing to chrysalis.  Here is a great link with more information.

Sophie wants to do her own nature blog, so I'll save some of the info for her to report on. This will be part of her science this year.

Milkweed, Caterpillars, Butterflies, Oh My!

We are at it again. A couple of years ago we raised monarch butterflies on our screened porch. The children had such a great time (and so did I) that when we found a few caterpillars on our milkweed, we decided to do it again.

If you've never done this, I highly recommend it. It is an EXCELLENT educational tool and we are also learning so much about our Heavenly Father as we observe these fascinating creatures.

All you need is milkweed really. We obtained some from a neighbor and it is very hardy, has pretty flowers and really attracts the monarchs. We simply take a cutting and put it in a vase with water. The vase should have a skinny neck to prevent accidental drowning should a little guy take a tumble. As they munch away, we add new cuttings. The milkweed roots quickly in water so if we continue for a while, we'll often have a ready supply.

Here are pictures of day one.
First, you see our largest one. He was about 1 inch when we found him.



The other three were newly hatched and measured only about .5 cm!! They are voracious eaters and double in size about every other day.

Here is a fun link to a video of a monarch caterpillar hatching from the egg. I don't have the ability to get a good video of it because they are so small.

Stay tuned.