Monarch Butterfly Story

[Music] the stor the Egg The larva the puper and the Amo the Monarch is one of our most summertime visitors its widespread habitat ranges from its Native America to many far away places butterflies belong to the only order of insects which have wings covered with scales the male Monarch has a little black mark on each lower wing distinguishing him from the female this Mark is thought to be a SC which emits an odor that attracts the female the Monarch is one of few insects known to migrate as birds do in the fall heading for the sun large swarms rest over Springtime they will return northward [Music] individually female Monarch lays her eggs on one particular family of plants the leaf of this species is long and Broad by time lapse photography its dainty flowers appear to burst open like kernels of [Music] popcorn if you have not recognized the leaf or flower of this familiar plant surely you have seen these silken parachuted seeds drifting about in the crisp autumn air the white bitter juice of this plant gives it its name milkweed the bitterness is probably transmitted to the Monarch in feeding and may be the reason why birds rarely attack this butterfly the Monarch is sometimes called the milkweed butterfly because its life is so closely associated with various species of the milkweed plant recognizing milked instantly the female Monarch alights momentarily and deposits a single egg quickly she is on her way again to lay more eggs She lays her eggs on the tender upper leaves of the plant usually on the underside of the leaf thus the caterpillar finds itself near a good food supply when it hatches out in 3 to 5 days the lava is born with a big appetite its first meal is the empty [Music] eggshell then as a tiny creature no bigger than a pin head it begins to eat its way through comparatively huge quantities of milk wheat leaves and in less than 2 weeks time it grows into a caterpillar nearly 1,000 times its original size the caterpillar grows so fast that its skin cannot stretch enough to accommodate this growth so the skin splits open along the back of the head and the caterpillar squirms out of it this process called molting is repeated several times during the lavel stage after molding the caterpillar turns around and devours the old skin rapid growth through all stages of development makes possible several Generations each season as it travels about the caterpillar spins from its mouth a track of sticky silk which adheres readily to the plant on its abdomen it has five pairs of false legs called prolegs which are the caterpillar's main locomotive system little hooks on the tips of the pr legs make it easier to hold on to the silk track B to the lead when hungry the monarch caterpillar sometimes cuts a notch inside of a leaf rib it then crawls to the extreme end of the [Music] leaf as it nears full growth the caterpillar has a tremendous out their whole milkweed patch all by itself so it eat and eat hold Another Mountain of silk on the rib of the leaf the caterpillar fastens this button more secure to the leaf by spinning a web of across the button and out on the leaf in all directions now the cater pil button by squeezing the button firmly between its rear or anal prle the other PR legs lose their hold on the leaf one pair at a time suddenly the caterpillar swings downward suspended from the leaf by its ingenious silk trap peas it hangs thus in the shape of the letter J for about 8 to 12 hours at frequent intervals it wriggles and twists and squirms finally with a determined effort it straightens its body downward the skin splits open behind its head its body works strenuously as a strange creature emerges from within the skin this is the pupa or crysalis it is undergoing a complete change of structure through one of the most mysterious processes in all of nature we call this process metamorphosis which means a change in form just before the skin has been shed entirely the caterpillar pulls tail from within the skin to the end of this tail is attached a black horny Barb called a craster the Barb is covered with tiny hooks it is plunged into the silk [Music] button the hooks are embedded deeper and deeper by the violent contortions of the crysalis [Music] when completely shaped the crysalis is a beautiful jade green pond banded with a stripe of gold and one of black and further adorned with scattered flakes of gold but most remarkable of all it Bears on its surface a distinct outline of the butterfly it is to become the Crysis hangs motionless for a period of 8 to 15 days very little change is apparent until the last two or 3 days of the pupil stage then the color gradually darkens this is the last day of the metamorphosis watch closely now for you are about to witness one of Nature's grandest dramas [Music] this indescribably beautiful creation was but a few days ago a lowly crawling caterpillar but now its recreated body is pumping fluid into the veins of wings destined for the Glorious freedom of the boundless skies in about 10 to 15 minutes after its emergence from the cryus shell the wings will be fully expanded the Monarch groups them limply to dry them in the warm rays of the Sun in a few hours they will be thoroughly dry and stiffened by the hardening of the [Music] fluid at last it tries its wings and Rises with Majestic power to frolic in the Sunny Meadows to seek the sparkling nectar of the flowers to add a new generation of beauty to this wonderful world [Music]