3. The First Stage: The Egg The mother butterfly lays many tiny eggs on a leaf. The leaf that the eggs are laid on is called a host plant. A host plant is a plant that will be used as food for the larva that hatch from the eggs. Each type of butterfly has a specific host plant. For example milkweed is the host plant for monarch butterflies.

4. After about 5 weeks the eggs hatch into larva. The larval stage lasts 2 weeks to about 1 month. This is the main feeding stage of the butterfly. They eat very much and grow very quickly. Butterfly larva is also known as a caterpillar.

5. After the caterpillar has eaten as much as he can he reaches adult size and is ready to form a chrysalis. A chrysalis is also known as a pupa. While in the chrysalis the caterpillar tissues break down and the butterfly structure is formed.

6. Chrysalis last anywhere from 2 weeks to a whole season! After the caterpillar has grown into an adult butterfly it emerges from its pupa and is now free to fly. Different butterfly species have different life spans. The average life span of a butterfly is 2 weeks.

8. Sources: thephotoforum.com http://www.kidsbutterfly.org/life-cycle http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/butterfly/lifecycle/Larv a.shtml http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/butterfly/lifecycle/Larv a.shtml buglifecycle.com djibnet.com scienceprojectlab.com http://www.cocoon.org ventnorpermaculture.wordpress.com kids.summum.us scienceclarified.com