Butterflies!
April 22nd, 2008 | Published in Everyday Life
We began by guessing which chrysalid might open first (the darker the color, the better the chances!). When a butterfly first emerged, it would remain stationary for a few hours. A red liquid (meconium) was excreted during this time (it consists of leftover coloring and tissues from wing formation!). The butterfly also begins pumping its wings to their full size (it forces blood under pressure into the veins of the wings). After about 2 hours, the butterfly is ready to fly.
After our first butterfly emerged, we began feeding it. We found flowers from our yard and put them into the habitat. We then made some sugar water and put dropperfuls onto the flowers. We’ve also done the same with orange slices. In the first photo below, you can see the butterfly’s proboscis which it uses to drink the sugar water or orange juice. The butterfly then rolls its proboscis back up.
The boys and I got out our magnifying glasses and have been observing the butterflies – so fun!
We hope to release our butterflies soon, so hopefully the weather here will get warmer!