The caterpillar totally dissolves and the goo re-forms as a butterfly. There are no recognizable body parts during the goo stage. Weird. (I believe I read that in Robert Michael Pyle's "A Handbook for Butterfly Watchers", which is a great book, btw.)
What also surprised me back in my caterpillar-in-a-jar-on-the-counter days was the amount of poop a monarch caterpillar can produce in a day.
There is a good book I read on butterflies, but like you said, the mystery is better. Plus there's just too much frass in the book. :)
Posted by: Anna | August 20, 2012 at 01:15 PM
Heeee. "frass."
Posted by: Adrienne | August 20, 2012 at 03:32 PM
The caterpillar totally dissolves and the goo re-forms as a butterfly. There are no recognizable body parts during the goo stage. Weird. (I believe I read that in Robert Michael Pyle's "A Handbook for Butterfly Watchers", which is a great book, btw.)
What also surprised me back in my caterpillar-in-a-jar-on-the-counter days was the amount of poop a monarch caterpillar can produce in a day.
Posted by: kmkat | August 20, 2012 at 07:55 PM