Yesterday, while the little one and I were at the park behind our house, she found this little guy hanging out on a weed, munching on a leaf.
She was thrilled to have found a caterpillar, exclaiming “Mommy, I found nature!” upon the discovery. We took it home and put it in a little bug jar (we keep one on hand for such occasions) with some of the weed trimmings for a snack. After doing a bit of research, I found out that our new little friend will turn into this butterfly.
American Painted Lady Image Source
Late last night, the caterpillar begin the process of turning in to a cocoon. This will be the first time we get to watch the Chrysalis cycle up close. If you google time lapse photos & videos of the process, it’s really interesting and kinda creepy. Caterpillars don’t build a cocoon, like I had thought. They actually shed their skin and become a cocoon. The whole thing is pretty mind blowing & makes me realize how awesome and astounding nature & life can be. Hopefully in a few weeks, a brand new butterfly will be emerging from it’s shell! We are all pretty excited at the possibility & the opportunity to watch it first-hand.
