Like most, my kids are enthralled with bugs.
My oldest is particularly interested in butterflies. So, when my mom said that one of her citrus trees with full of swallowtail caterpillars, I told her to be sure to save us one so that we could watch it turn into a butterfly.
Being the awesome grandma that she is, my mom boxed one up and sent it to us via priority mail. The little gal arrived thirsty but very much alive and so our butterfly adventure began.
First we took our little caterpillar out of the box and watched her crawl around on a plate. That was fun.
Then we made her a cozy little home. Be sure that you have lots of whatever your caterpillar likes to eat on hand. They won’t eat just anything. Every caterpillar likes something different. The swallowtails that we have out here in Arizona like to eat citrus. So we clipped a bunch of citrus leaves and stuck them in our container.
It was such a fun experience and the girls were amazed. I think we’ll do it a bunch more times as we find different caterpillars.
Here are a couple of great books about butterflies that I have read with the kids:
National Geographic Readers: Caterpillar to Butterfly – http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008OBR1KY/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B008OBR1KY&linkCode=as2&tag=fivelitthome-20
Butterflies: Level Four (Usborne First Reading) – http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0794519407/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0794519407&linkCode=as2&tag=fivelitthome-20 (This is Lucy’s FAVORITE book and it is so informative!)
Shared on:
From the Farm Blog Hop – http://thismindbeinyou.com/2013/05/from-the-farm-blog-hop-35.html
Frugally Sustainable – http://frugallysustainable.com/2013/06/frugal-days-sustainable-ways-75/
Wildcrafting Wednesday – http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com/2013/06/wildcrafting-wednesday-23.html
The Backyard Farming Connection – http://www.backyardfarmingconnection.com/2013/06/the-backyard-farming-connection-35.html
Standard, legally required, Endorsement Disclosure: In order for me to support my blogging activities, I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this blog.
I just recently found your blog, I have been enjoying it, keep up the good work!
And I love this post.. hatching butterflies has been on my list for awhile!
How fun. I remember doing that when I was little. We’ll put it on the list for next summer!
So sweet. Ours never emerged this past year – we’ll have to try again.