Butterflies

What are butterflies? Butterflies are insects. Insects are a group of living things that have six legs and three main body parts. Butterflies often have big colorful wings.

What do butterflies look like? Butterflies have four large wings that come in a variety of colors. They have three main body parts with six legs. Two antennae extend from their head. Butterflies can be very small or up to six inches wide!

What do butterflies eat? Butterflies eat nectar. Nectar is a sweet liquid made by flowers. Butterflies have a straw-like mouth called a proboscis that they use to suck up the nectar.

Butterfly Life Cycle - Egg Butterflies start their lives as an egg. They lay their eggs on plants. Butterfly eggs are very small. The eggs are sticky and stay on the plant until they are ready to hatch.

Butterfly Life Cycle - Caterpillar Caterpillars hatch from the egg. Caterpillars eat plants. Caterpillars can be fuzzy or smooth. They can be plain or very colorful.

Butterfly Life Cycle - Chrysalis After awhile, the caterpillar hangs itself upside down from a stem or branch. It builds a hard shell around itself called a chrysalis. It will stay this way for a long time.

Butterfly Life Cycle – Adult Butterfly After several weeks, an adult butterfly emerges. At first, the butterfly’s wings are wet. She lets them dry. After they’re dry, the butterfly flies away to lay eggs of her own!