Facts and Tips about Raising Monarchs
“But what if they die?” protested my daughter when I told her that we needed to stop looking for monarch caterpillars so that I could go home and start supper. Maybe I shouldn’t have told her that raising monarch caterpillars increases their chance of survival into butterflies.
We’ve been looking all summer for monarch eggs or caterpillars, but it hasn’t been until recently that we started finding them. Monarchs visit each state at varying times during their migration so you have to choose the right time of year for your state.
Don’t miss the free butterfly activity sheets below.
Why should we invest time in raising monarchs?
Raising monarch butterflies is a rewarding and educational activity you can do with your children. The monarch chrysalis is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful objects in nature. The transformation is also amazing to watch. Having the caterpillars right in your home where you can watch each stage is sure to leave a lasting impression.
The monarch population is dwindling and raising the caterpillars is encouraged to help more of them reach adulthood. By raising monarchs, it teaches our children to care for the world around them. I think even something as simple as raising monarchs can encourage empathy in our children.
For an example, my daughter was carrying a monarch egg on the way back from the monarch patch and it fell off the leaf. A few days later she asked me what was going to happen when the egg hatches and there is no milkweed around for the caterpillar. I could see the concern on her face for the almost microscopic insect. (Okay, maybe too much empathy can be a bad thing.)
Monarchs are one of the best examples in nature of the new birth in Christ. We are all born sinners and it’s only through a transformation that we can be made new creatures. This would be a great illustration to your children that even children born to Christian parents need to be transformed by Christ.
Did you know the following about monarchs?
Monarch caterpillars are called instars and go through five stages, molting between each one as their skin grows too tight. They increase in mass by 2,000 times over 9-14 days.
Monarchs go through several life cycles per summer. The butterflies usually only live for 2 to 6 weeks, except the last generation, which can live for 8 to 9 months. This generation migrates to Mexico and overwinters there, before returning to the states next summer.
How to Find Monarch Caterpillars
Look underneath milkweed leaves for the caterpillars. We’ve found them most often on leaves that have holes in the middle of the leaf. We’ve also found them on leaves with no holes. The first instar caterpillars are very tiny so look carefully. You might also find monarch eggs.
Another way to find eggs is by watching monarch butterflies. If you see a monarch landing on a milkweed plant it most likely laid an egg on the leaf. Once you’ve located the egg, carefully detach the leaf and take it home. It’s exciting when the egg actually hatches. The egg usually hatches in 4 days and they will turn almost black before they hatch. The newly hatched caterpillars will be very small. I thought ours had disappeared until I noticed tiny holes in the milkweed leaf it was on.
Tips for Raising Monarch Caterpillars
You can buy special net enclosures for the caterpillars, but we keep them in jars with netting on the top. Feed them fresh milkweed every day and clean the frass (yes, that’s actually a word for insect droppings) out of the jar. You may wish to wrap the ends of the milkweed in wet tissue and foil to keep them from drying out.
What to Expect when Raising Monarchs
- It takes 4 days for the eggs to hatch.
- Each instar lasts 1-3 days. They’ll shed their skin between instars. Here is a guide about monarch caterpillar instars. We enjoyed trying to figure out which instar caterpillar we had found.
- They usually crawl off the milkweed to molt so if you notice this, you might want to watch closely to watch the molting.
- The caterpillars will also crawl off the milkweed when they are ready to form a chrysalis. They will hang upside down, usually from the top of their cage, in a “J” shape. After around 18 hours, they will form the chrysalis.
- The chrysalis is revealed when they shed their skin a final time. It is not something that is spun around the caterpillar like a cocoon. It happens quickly so you need to be alert if you want to see it.
More Information on Raising Monarch Butterflies
- How to Raise Monarch Butterflies (book)
- Caterpillar to Chrysalis (short video)
- Monarch Butterfly Metamorphasis (short video)
- Life Cycle and Migration Sheets
Note: You can also order butterfly kits online. The kit linked is for painted ladies, not monarchs. You can order monarch caterpillars from Monarch Watch, but you will need fresh milkweed to raise them. If you have fresh milkweed you should be able to find monarchs on it, but this may not always be the case.
Please check the laws in the state where you live and make sure you raise monarchs responsibly.
Monarch Books we Love
Winged Wonders: Solving the Monarch Migration Mystery by Meeg Pincus (illustrated by Yas Imamura) is a beautiful book about how the migration of the monarchs was discovered and all the people who helped out along the way.
Butterflies Belong Here by Deborah Hopkinson (illustrated by Meilo So) tells the life cycle of the Monarch (and its dependence on milkweed) through the story of a young girl that moves to a new school. At first, she feels small and insignificant, but as she leads her class and neighborhood in taking steps to bring back the Monarchs her confidence grows.
A recent outdoor adventure I’ve recently enjoyed is breathing new life into a run down community garden.
That sounds so rewarding!
We recently found 3 monarch caterpillars at the river. My children love to watch them grow and change into beautiful butterflies! They are fascinated every time!!🥰
We’re looking forward to doing this again this year!
This is a great tutorial! Looking forward to hunting monarch caterpillars with my littles tomorrow – a first for us!
I hope you find some!
I found a turtle in our yard.
How fun! For some reason, we never see turtles, so that would be really neat.
Our family camped in the Smokies and saw the synchronous fireflies.
I’ve read about those. How neat that you got to experience that!
Every morning, I sit under our covered deck, gaze out at our big koi pond, then feed the koi & goldfish. After that, I hand-feed healthy treats to our three rescued hens. I give them different vegetables & fruits – celery, carrots, cucumbers, bananas, blueberries, strawberries, or grapes, all of which they love. I derive so much pleasure from this soothing morning ritual.
That does sound soothing. It sounds like you have a beautiful spot to relax.
We discovered a nest of three baby bunnies in our backyard
I’d love to discover that!
We just returned from a visit to the dairy farm. My children were able to see the cows that supply their milk (we buy raw milk from Sprouts) and learn about what grasses they feed on, how the cows are milked, and benefits of raw milk. It was an absolute treat and we are grateful for farmers who take pride in their work and love their animals well. There was also a calf that was just born and we were able to watch it try to take it first steps. It was a beautiful day with lovely creatures.
We recently went to a place called Johnson Shut-ins, where the river has created beautiful little waterfalls and pools, and we saw some really big butterflies there! 💓
We recently hosted a bird watching event for the kiddos in our neighborhood. We read books, made journals, and walked around the block!
I took my boys on a nature walk by a river today
Just sitting in the grass watching my kids swim in the kiddie pool, picking up leaves and examining them, appreciating every crinkle and dark spot, and all of the colors.
We raise monarch every year. Even after doing it for so long it still amazes me every time I watch the transformation. Last year we planted a ton more milkweed so I’m super excited to see how many monarch we get this summer. Thanks for hosting this giveaway!
Yesterday I took my kids to a local park that has a creek running through it. I just sat in the shade and watched them play. So nice!
Love this! We are planning to raise some butterflies next summer.
This is so wonderful! We have been blessed by the calendars this year. It got us outside and looking! What a joy studying the monarchs would be this summer!
How wonderful! My kiddos and I will be looking forward to exploring monarchs!
Can’t wait until my baby is old enough to enjoy these she is only 3 months bow though
We went on a nature walk the other day looking for butterflies inspired by the calendar. We got lucky that day and saw a bee hive relocating! It was amazing and my little girls love bees so it was extra magical!!
That’s really neat that you were able to observe that. That’s one of the thing I love about nature. There’s always something new to see.
A recent outdoor adventure we’ve been on is exploring a new beach in the Puget Sound. My girls, 2 & 4, were mesmerized by the rocky shore. My 4 year old was on a hunt for flat “wishing rocks” to throw into the sea, while my 2 year old was dedicated to collecting all of the white rocks until her pockets were overflowing! ❤️ It was gray and a bit rainy, but we saw a double rainbow and two seals!
What a beautiful way to spend the day! You’re making memories that will last a lifetime. We almost never get to the seaside, but we really need to make plans for it.
I grew up near a beautiful monarch grove and had the pleasure of helping some scientists from the Univeristy tag them to track their movements. It was amazing.
We went camping at the lake recently and we saw on Osprey and then did a bunch of research into them. It was a fun trip
That sounds so neat! What a fun experience!
I saw a butterfly on our trip to South Mountain in North Carolina on Memorial Day and caught it on photo- my husband got a picture of me trying to capture nature, and the picture inspires me to look more!!