Here's Merrit, looking at them through the mesh wall of the Butterfly Pavilion.
We took the pavilion outside, unzipped the cover, and...
Nothing happened!
I guess Merrit and I both expected that the butterflies would hurriedly fly out of there on their own. "We're Freeeeeeee!" But, no, they were content to just hang out, eating the little chunks of watermelon we'd put in there for them.
Here are four butterflies sitting inside the pavilion.
When the tenth chrysalid hatched, we did get to see it happen, which was so cool! That little butterfly, though, was born with a deformed wing. Merrit was very tender with him (or her?) as he tried to release it gently into the herb garden.
OVERVIEW OF THE BUTTERFLY LIFE CYCLE:
For $5.00, we ordered Painted Lady larvae, which come in a special container that contains all the food they need to survive until they're ready to build their chrysalids. We ordered two containers, each with five larvae.
Once the larvae climb to the top of the container and build their chrysalids, we gently opened the lid and removed the circular piece of fabric from the lid. This gets pinned to the inside of the pavilion with a safety pin.
Even though we watched the chrysalids daily to see if they were getting close to hatching, it wasn't until we went away for an overnight trip that they climbed out of their cocoons to greet the world. Maybe they're shy?? In any case, they sure are beautiful! Painted ladies, indeed!
Just wait, Ollie: We are saving the Butterfly Pavilion for you. You'll have many opportunities to watch larvae metamorphosize into butterflies!!
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