Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 5: Catch the caterpillar
• Part 2 of 5: Set Up Your Caterpillar's Home
• Part 3 of 5: Take care of your caterpillar
• Part 4 of 5: Take care of the butterfly
• Part 5 of 5: Alternative Ways to Find Caterpillars
• Tips
• Warnings
• What do you need
• Similar articles

Look out the window and see beautiful butterflies fluttering past you. Surprisingly, such beauty emerged from a small garden caterpillar only a couple of centimeters long, which at one time, perhaps, ate the leaves of your favorite roses. Perhaps, when you look at a butterfly, you dreamily think: "Oh, if only you could ...", and then the thought comes to your mind to grow them yourself!

Steps

Part 1 of 5: Catch the caterpillar

1. 1 Prepare a well-ventilated container. Track containers can be found at the pet store or ordered online, or you can make them yourself, for example, from wire mesh (so that the caterpillar can catch on to something). An aquarium or some small pitcher is also great, as long as the top is tightened with gauze or fine mesh.
   • Do not use a can lid with holes because they do not provide adequate ventilation, and the sharp edges around these holes can injure sensitive tracks.
   • Place some dirt and grass on the bottom of each container if you think the caterpillar might pupate underground. If not, you can put paper towels or a newspaper on it.
2. 2 Look for caterpillars on plants. Instead of killing the caterpillar with pesticides or killing it, try turning it into a butterfly (see Warnings). If you are unsure of where caterpillars are most likely to be found, find information online or ask your forester to understand which plants the caterpillars live on. It is very important to avoid the rare species of caterpillars that may be protected by law. Different types of butterflies live in different places. Here are a few places where they are most likely to be found:
   • Monarch butterfly - spurge
   • Swallowtail butterfly - linder bush
   • Tiger swallowtail - banana tree (azimina)
   • Thistle - thistle
   • Black swallowtail - parsley, dill, fennel
   • Viceroy butterfly, saturnia cecropia, white admiral - cherry
   • If this is not the season for caterpillars, or you simply don’t have time for it, consider buying a caterpillar from a pet store. We will discuss this in the last section.

Part 2 of 5: Set Up Your Caterpillar's Home

1. 1 Pry the caterpillar with a twig. It should be a thin branch (ideally the same plant you found the caterpillar on) or some other. Be very careful to handle the caterpillar gently, because it can die if dropped even from a small height.
   • You should not take the caterpillar with your hands for several reasons: firstly, it will then be difficult to place it in its house, because it clings tightly to the surface of the hand. Secondly, the caterpillar will crawl along your hand, and you can accidentally hit it. Third, you may have dirty hands and bacteria can infect the caterpillar, and some caterpillars can be poisonous (see Warnings).
   • Place the sprig and caterpillar in the container. It is important not to discard the twig, as it will be the twig that will pupate.
2. 2 Go back to wood or the bush where you found the caterpillar. Cut a small twig with leaves from it. Most likely, it is this plant that serves as food for the caterpillar. Before trying to feed a caterpillar, you need to know what it feeds on. Some types of caterpillars (for example, the caterpillar of the Monarch butterfly) prefer only one type of plant (spurge). Other caterpillars can feed on different plants. But keep in mind, caterpillars will starve half to death before they start eating unfamiliar food.
   • If you are not sure about which plant you want, look for information on the Internet, and then look for leaves from the plant on which this caterpillar was sitting, because the caterpillar itself chose this plant.
3. 3 Place the leaves in a container. Before placing the caterpillar there, look for spiders and insects in the container, as they can kill the caterpillar. Change the leaves in the container every day because the caterpillar will not feed on dry old leaves. To keep the leaves fresh for a long time, place them in flower tubes filled with water (they are sold in flower shops and are cheap). There is no need to put dishes, a jar or a vase of leaves for the caterpillar there, because the caterpillar can fall there and drown.
   • If the caterpillar is sitting on the leaves you want to replace, do not try to remove it from there, because the caterpillars adhere tightly to the surface, which can cause its legs to be ripped off. Instead, just add a few more leaves to the container. After some time, the caterpillar will move to a new portion of the leaves, and in the meantime you can remove the old ones.
4. 4 Keep the container outside. Place it in an enclosed space, where there is no heat or cold, where it cannot be reached by pets and your loved ones, who may accidentally throw it away or break the container. If you live in dry climates, you can sometimes spray the container with a bullet machine because the caterpillars like humid climates. But don't overdo it, or mold may start to grow in the container.
   • If you want to increase the moisture in the container, cover the top of the container with a plastic bag. Thus, moisture will not evaporate, but will accumulate. This is especially useful advice for growing Monarch butterflies and Viceroy butterflies.

Part 3 of 5: Take care of your caterpillar

1. 1 Check how your caterpillar is doing every day. Regularly clean the container from excrement, mold. Resist the urge to hold the caterpillar, especially if it is inactive and has changed color, as this may indicate a transformation has begun. Feed your caterpillar fresh food and watch for changes. Soon the caterpillar will pupate and turn into a cocoon, and then into a butterfly.
   • Don't touch the doll.During pupation, she does not need water or food, she only needs a moist environment that you can create from time to time.
   • Caterpillars eat “a lot”. You can place paper towels or newspapers in the container for easy cleaning behind the caterpillar. It is very important to clean up after it in time, because the remaining excrement will begin to rot, which can cause the caterpillar to get sick and die.
2. 2 Watch the behavior of the caterpillar. If you start to notice that the caterpillar has changed color or appears lethargic, it is most likely going to molt and form a pupa. During this period, the caterpillar is especially vulnerable, so do not touch it or try to pull it out. You will soon notice that the caterpillar begins to curl.
   • Perhaps the caterpillar just got sick. If you have multiple caterpillars and one of them dies, remove it from the container as soon as possible to avoid infecting healthy caterpillars.
3. 3 The chrysalis should be hanging outdoors. Make sure that the pupa hangs in the area of ​​the container where there is a lot of space, as it will need room to spread its wings when it emerges from the cocoon, without touching the floor and walls of the container. Butterflies need a lot of room to spread their wings, and the container must be dry for them to fly. If the butterfly cannot spread its wings, it may fall to the ground and not survive.
   • If necessary, move the twig or the object where the doll is hanging to a more suitable place. Again, do everything very carefully. Move slowly and smoothly. You don't want the chrysalis to fall, because then the butterfly will die.
   • If the pupa falls off, attach a piece of paper to the tip of the pupa with hot glue, then wait for it to cool and harden. After that, attach a piece of paper to cardboard or something else and place in a container.
4. 4 Be patient. It takes time for a butterfly or a moth to emerge from a pupa, and this time depends on the type of butterfly. If you are very interested, you can try to take a good look at the caterpillar, its colors and some marks, and then look on the Internet or books for information about this species. Some butterflies, such as the Monarch butterflies, emerge from the cocoon after 9-14 days. Some other butterflies can remain in the pupal stage throughout the winter, emerging from their cocoon only in the spring.
   • The only thing you need to do during this period is to create optimal moisture for the pupa and maintain it. The pupa does not need food or water, it only needs a suitable environment.
   • You may see how the pupa changes color. Then it becomes clear that the moment you have been waiting for is about to come. This can happen in an instant, so don't go anywhere if you don't want to miss the appearance of the butterfly. As soon as the butterfly appears, it will hang on the cocoon for about several hours, spreading its wings and finally forming.
   • If the cocoon darkens, it may be dead. Try to gently bend it, if it does not return to its previous state, it is most likely dead.

Part 4 of 5: Take care of the butterfly

1. 1 Be prepared to feed the emerging butterfly. The butterfly will not eat for several hours. At this time, she should spread her wings and let them dry. Once the butterfly has emerged from its cocoon, it will be able to feed in your garden if it contains flower nectar. Sometimes, butterflies can feed from hummingbird feeders. Some butterflies also feed on ripe fruits in addition to flower nectar. So prepare your butterfly garden.
   • Don't be alarmed if you end up with a moth instead of a butterfly. Moths have the same coloring as butterflies, only it is less intense and colorful, but this does not make the drawing less beautiful. Even different shades of the same color can look really amazing.
2. 2 Watch the butterfly for a few hours. When the butterfly's wings are dry, you can put your finger under the butterfly's legs to make it sit on it.You can go out into the garden and plant a butterfly on a beautiful flower for great photos. Once you grow a butterfly, you can find out its life period. Keep in mind that some butterflies live for less than a day. Remember this and give the butterflies freedom.
   • To live normally, butterflies must be free. This is only possible if you have a large well-kept garden where they can stay. However, many butterflies leave the gardens and migrate elsewhere. If you want butterflies to live normally, do not take away their freedom.
3. 3 Watch your butterflies loose. Some butterflies can live for several days, some will live for only a couple of days and then migrate, and some may stay with you for several weeks. In any case, be happy that you managed to successfully raise butterflies and observe their generation.
   • If you've raised a moon moth, Cecropia bloodworm, or Polyphemus moth, don't worry about feeding them. These curious creatures do not migrate in search of food.

Part 5 of 5: Alternative Ways to Find Caterpillars

1. 1 Consider catching an adult female. Most adult females are already fertilized and can lay eggs. If you catch one such female, you can wait for her to lay her eggs.
   • Place the butterfly in a water bottle (with holes) next to a light source (preferably sunlight). This stimulates her to lay eggs. You can also keep her in a dark, cool place for several days so that she more quickly gets used to her new habitat.
   • With moths, things are much simpler. If you've caught an adult female moth, you can place it in a large paper bag, put the bag somewhere, and leave it for a couple of days. She will likely lay eggs on the inside of the bag during this time. Remove the bag without touching the eggs, then carefully transfer them to a more suitable container.
2. 2 Visit the Monarch Butterfly Farm. These butterflies are so popular that you can find gardens and farms with these butterflies, where you can catch the caterpillar of the monarch butterfly. The garden will help you move the caterpillars into a container without harming them.
   • The only difficulty in growing a Monarch butterfly is that you need to find a spurge that serves as food for them. If spurge does not grow in your area, you will have to buy or grow it to feed the Monarch butterfly.
3. 3 You can buy tracks from a supplier. If you can't find caterpillars in your yard, or it is not the right time of year (it varies by area), you can buy caterpillars from a pet store or vendor. In most cases, these stores have a variety of varieties for all tastes, and you will know exactly who you are growing. It seems to be quite easy to grow a burdock because it is easiest for them to choose the right plant.
   • It may not be as interesting as looking for food suitable for a butterfly on your own, knowing that it will really like it. If you can, take some time to research the plants in your garden. Try all possible methods, and only as a last resort, contact the pet store or supplier for caterpillars.

Tips

• Caterpillars do not need to be watered. They get the liquid they need from fresh, juicy leaves.
• If you are looking for a Monarch butterfly caterpillar, you will find it on a milkweed plant. Cut off the stem because the caterpillar feeds on the stem, and then place the stem with the caterpillar in the container. This is usually a guarantee that you will not injure the track during transport.
• Try to find different caterpillars and grow amazing butterflies from them. Try looking for caterpillars that look like bird droppings. They are about the size of an antenna, and when they grow and pupate, they turn into beautiful dark blue butterflies.
• Look for caterpillars in a wide variety of places, not just in your yard. Look for them in the park, in the forest.Plus, it can be a great time to go out with your family for a picnic.
• Butterflies and moths are cold-blooded animals. This means that their temperature depends on the ambient temperature. They also feed on nectar.
• The caterpillar may die, but don't be too upset. It takes a little practice and skill to raise caterpillars and butterflies, mainly related to choosing food and creating a favorable habitat for them. Find more information about the types of butterflies you are trying to raise to see what is best for them. Remove dead caterpillars from the container in time so that the infection that could kill the caterpillar does not infect others.
• Remove the caterpillar every 1-3 days and replace the old leaves with new ones. Then rinse them out, leaving a few drops - this is the source of water for the caterpillars. If you notice that the caterpillar is eating more than usual, then it is lacking in nutrients, try giving it other leaves.
• Moths can live as long as they want in captivity because they don't need to migrate to feed. Despite this, it is still better to give them freedom, because their life is already very short.

Warnings

• Be careful with caterpillars, some of them can be poisonous. The poison is their defense mechanism, so do not touch them with your hands. If the poison gets into the eyes, it can damage the mucous membranes.
• If you decide to buy caterpillars, keep in mind that in many countries this requires a legal permit.
• Do not collect rare endangered caterpillars and butterflies that are endangered and protected by law.
• Beware of brightly spotted, spiked caterpillars as they can be highly venomous. Once you have experience in growing butterflies, you can try to gently transfer such a caterpillar to your container, because they usually grow large, beautiful butterflies.
• Try to collect caterpillars in your region, not outside the city. Don't buy caterpillars from a butterfly breeder. Keep in mind that butterflies that do not live in your area can harm native species of butterflies, they can even crowd out them. Therefore, in some states there are laws against the cultivation of foreign species of animals.
• Many species of butterflies feed exclusively on nettles, so be careful when collecting such caterpillars!

What do you need

• Container (something like an aquarium or a large plastic container for plants, covered with a net on top)
• Flowering plants (those that the caterpillar will feed on)
• About 5 cm of ground (if the caterpillar pupates underground)
• Newspaper or paper towel mat

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