Butterfly Life Cycle

The butterfly life cycle happens in four stages. All of these stages together are called metamorphosis. 

Did you know a butterfly starts out as a caterpillar? In the first stage of metamorphosis, butterfly eggs are laid on a leaf where they hatch and become a larva, also known as a caterpillar. Next, the caterpillar gets ready to pupate, which means it covers itself with string to make a sac. The sac is called a chrysalis. The caterpillar is now called a pupa, and it hangs upside down from a tree branch in its chrysalis. In a few weeks, a butterfly comes out of the chrysalis and unfold its wings so they can become harder. Then, the butterfly flies away!

Have you ever seen a caterpillar? If you have, it was just a few weeks away from becoming a pupa inside a chrysalis! 

Sometimes if you look outside during spring, you can see a small chrysalis hanging from a tree branch!