After several weeks of waiting, today we finally released our butterflies into our outdoor area! St Lucia have been so excited to watch our caterpillars build their cocoons, emerge, feed on fruit and sugar water, and finally take their first flight. We released the four butterflies one at a time, giving the children time to examine and hold them before setting them free. As you can see from their faces, they were fascinated!
The children sat beautifully in a circle around our campfire area, whilst Miss Evans walked around so that everyone could see the butterflies and watch them flying up through the canopy.
Tyler said 'I can see the long tongue!' (which we now know is called a 'proboscis,') which Teddy said is used 'to get the nectar from flowers.'
One of our butterflies had smaller wings that had stuck together and needed some help getting into the air. Whilst his wings dried some of the children had a chance to hold him, before he was finally able to fly on his own. Watching our butterflies grow has been a valuable experience for all the children, and I'm sure will spark some great conversations at home!
