The Life Cycle of a Monarch Butterfly

1
The Life Cycle of a Monarch Butterfly

• A presentation by Nicole Gaughan

2
You Will Learn.

• What a life cycle is
• The life cycle of a Monarch butterfly
• The stages a Monarch butterfly goes through
• Some vocabulary terms that go along with the
  stages

3
Life Cycles

• A life cycle is all the changes that happen to an
  organism between birth and death.
  
• A life stage is a change or event that happens at
  one point of life.
  
• Metamorphosis is a series of life stages that an
  insect goes through to become and adult.
  Butterflies have four life stages during their
  life cycle.

4
Monarch Butterfly Life Cycle Stages
Egg
1.
2.
Caterpillar
3.
4.
Chrysalis
Adult Butterfly
5
Stage 1 The Egg

• found on the underside of milkweed leaves
• tiny, round and oval in shape and size
• hatches in 3-5 days when the weather is warm

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Stage 2 The Caterpillar (or larva)

• long and worm like
• usually brightly colored with an interesting
  pattern
  
• sheds its skin a couple of times because its
  growing bigger
  
• stays a caterpillar for about 14 days

7
Stage 3 The Chrysalis (or pupa)

• transformation stage
• caterpillar spins a cocoon (a silk covering)
• made when a caterpillar spins silk and attaches
  itself to a branch
  
• starts out a green color and then turns brown and
  orange
  
• takes 10-12 days for the butterfly to be ready

• Butterfly emerging from the chrysalis

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Stage 4 Adult Butterfly

• the butterfly is fully developed
• it doesnt grow anymore
• it can only eat liquids
• usually lives for 14-42 days

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Summary
Life Cycle Stages

• 1. Egg found on leaves and stems of milkweed
  plants, tiny, oval in shape and hatches in 3-5
  days
  
• 2. Caterpillar long and worm like, usually
  brightly colored with an interesting pattern and
  sheds its skin a couple of times because its
  growing bigger
• 3. Chrysalis transformation stage, usually brown
  or green, made when a caterpillar spins silk and
  attaches itself to a branch and takes 10-12 days
  for the butterfly to be ready
• 4. Adult Butterfly the butterfly is fully
  developed, it doesnt grow anymore and it can
  only eat liquids

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Acknowledgements

• Butterfly stages chart http//www.hhmi.org/
  coolscience/butterfly/index.html
  
• Monarch butterfly picture http//www.kidzone.ws/an
  imals/monarch_butterfly.htm
  
• caterpillar picture
  http//www.kidzone.ws/animals/monarch_butterfly.ht
  m
  
• Butterfly eggs picture
  http//home.vicnet.net.au/fbpw/but_fly1.htm
  
• Butterfly stages information http//www.usd.edu/es
  ci/age/content/natural_clocks/butterfly/butterfly.
  html
  http//home.vicnet.net.au/fbpw/but_fly1.htm
• Chrysalis picture http//www.usd.edu/esci/age/cont
  ent/natural_clocks/butterfly/butterfly.html
  
• Butterfly life cycle video http//education.apple.
  com/education/ilife/project_template.php?project_i
  d83subject_id4
  
• Butterfly emerging from chrysalis website
  pictures http//www.adver-net.com/Mon
  emerg.html