Wyatt received a really cool birthday present this year...a Butterfly Treehouse. It's basically a kit to raise butterflies, from the larva stage. You order the larvae, and they arrive arrive by mail in a small cup filled with larvae food. The larvae (caterpillars) seem to double in size every day, and it was very fun to watch them grow and spin silk. After about 7 days, they crawl to the top of the cup and hang upside down. The next day, they had formed chrysalides.
It was awesome to watch. They stayed in their chrysalides for another 7 days or so, and then they emerged as butterflies.
The whole family really enjoyed checking on the caterpillars and butterflies every day. We kept the butterflies in their "treehouse" for 2 days, and then we let them go today. They were called "painted ladies." I snapped a couple of pictures. I think we will probably order some more caterpillars again (you can reuse the butterfly house after cleaning it).
Hint: If you decide to release your butterflies outside, make sure there are no lizards in the immediate vicinity. Apparently, lizards enjoy eating butterflies. I was horrified to watch one of "my" butterflies be devoured by a hungry, lurking lizard. The circle of life I suppose.Thanks, Becky, for a great gift. We all enjoyed it.
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