Painted Lady Butterflies:
Name:
Introduction Questions:
1. Do butterflies go through complete or incomplete metamorphosis? Explain why.
2. What are the different phases of a butterfly’s life cycle?
3. How long do you think a monarch butterfly’s life cycle is?
Label the parts of the butterfly below.
Caterpillar: Thorax, Thoracic Legs, Spiracles, Simple Eyes, Setae, Abdomen, Abdominal Legs,
Head, and Mandible
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
Butterfly: Head, Hind Wing, Legs, Proboscis, Thorax, Abdomen, Antenna, Compound Eye,
Fore Wing
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
Complete the table to help make observations of the butterflies in our class:
Life Cycle Changes Table
Date of 1st day
Current Life Stage
Activities Observed
in stage
Location/Position
Caterpillar
Sketch
Pupa
Adult
During the time in the larval/caterpillar form, monitor the growth of your caterpillar. Fill in the
table below. Collect data on 5 different days. Start with the first day you get your caterpillar.
Caterpillar Growth Table – You will use this data to help with question #6.
Date
Size in mm
Physical appearance
Any noticeable changes?
Conclusion:
1. Based on your data collected, what stage does a butterfly spend more of its cycle in, pupa
or larvae? Explain why this might be.
2. What are some factors that might play a part in butterfly development?
3. Explain the growth rate of the caterpillar. Why is this important?
4. Throughout our lengthy experiment what sources of error might have occurred?
5. Create an experiment for your painted butterflies during its adult stage. List Hypothesis,
Materials, Procedure, and type of data collection you would use. Type it and attach it to
this WS.
6. Using the data from your Caterpillar Growth Table make a line graph showing the rate of
growth for your caterpillar. Attach it to this WS.