The Life Cycle
of a Butterfly
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| Monarch feeding on Helenium |
Butterflies are the jewels
of a garden perhaps in part because of their extraordinary life cycle that can
last a month or nearly a year. They begin life as a tiny egg that the female
has attached to a leaf of a host plant or near one. A host plant is what the
caterpillar will feed on when it emerges. Host plants are critical to
butterflies because some, like Monarchs can only feed on one species of plant,
milkweeds.
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| Monarch Caterpillar |
If you look closely, you can often see the caterpillar growing
inside. When the caterpillar or larva emerges from the egg it is in a feeding
and growth stage. It will shed its skin several times to accommodate its
growing body. When the caterpillar spins it’s cocoon the transformation begins
in the chrysalis or pupa. Many species overwinter in this stage. Finally, the
magic is complete and the adult or imago emerges. In this stage butterflies
mate and migrate or colonize new areas so, the circle begins again.
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| One of my favorite milkweed plants, Asclepias 'Hello Yellow' |
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