"The Monarch is as important to the Butterfly Station as the T.rex is to Jurassic Park."

-Eric Airhienbuwa, 7/19/2024

The Monarch (Danaus plexippus) 

Life cycle

The next part of the butterfly life cycle is what we like to call the J-shape. When caterpillars climb up and hang upside down in a J-shape, it means they are ready to go into their chrysalises. This stage lasts for around 24 hours until the caterpillar sheds its skin and becomes a chrysalis. 

Below is a time-lapse of a monarch going from caterpillar to chrysalis

The chrysalis does not move from when it forms. It is hung from strings the caterpillar spun to secure it. The monarch chrysalis is a pale green color with a golden ring around the upper part of the chrysalis. This is where the monarch's name comes from because settlers in America thought the golden ring looked like a crown. When the chrysalis is about to hatch, it darkens and eventually becomes transparent. You can see the wings of the butterfly and shortly afterward they will hatch. This stage lasts around 8-12 days.

Below is a time-lapse video of a monarch hatching from its chrysalis. 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pu4NdAUnJ6ATjlaetEykNHCCitWQ8nsZ/view?usp=sharing

After the chrysalis hatches, the butterfly needs to dry it's wings in order for it to be able to fly. It also releases what we call "wing juice" which kind of looks like drops of fruit punch. It is completely natural and doesn't hurt the butterfly. When the butterfly begins flapping it's wings a lot and trying to fly around, that is when we know it is ready to be released into our butterfly house!

Here are some fun facts about monarch butterflies!

-They are orange, a bright color, which means danger in nature. This is to show that they are poisonous and that birds/other predators should not eat them

-These butterflies migrate all the way to Mexico every year to spend the winter there. The reason is because it's too cold in most of the United States for these butterflies in the winter. They end up in trees where they wait out the winter with thousands of other monarchs until it is warm enough to return home. On the way back they lay more eggs and that's where caterpillars come from in the springtime.

-The male monarchs have a dot on the bottom part of each wing which females do not. This is how we can tell them apart.