Monarch Caterpillar/Butterfly
APPEARANCE: CATERPILLAR: Up to 2-3/4 inches long; black with white and yellow bands.
BUTTERFLY: Wingspan 3-1/2 to four inches long; wings brownishorange; black to dark brown veins; two rows of orange and/or white spots.
HABITS: Found primarily in meadows, roadsides and sandy areas where milkweeds grow.
DIET: Caterpillars feed on milkweed foliage, flower buds and milky juice; butterflies feed on flowers.
REPRODUCTION: Females lay eggs along migration northward; fully grown caterpillar changes to barrel-shaped, leaf-green pupa with gold dots; process from egg to butterfly takes about four weeks.
OTHER INFORMATION: Butterflies are capable of flying 2,000 miles during southern migration each autumn, often stopping in same rest spots every year.