I ordered from Earth's Birthday Project last year, and we were not disappointed! www.earthsbirthday.org The earliest arrival date is March 1st this year. We ordered ours to arrive in mid-March last year and by the time we let them go, the weather was perfect. We reside in central AL. I'm assuming the northern states may want to hold off a month or so for their arrival date???
Earth's Birthday Project is having a 12% off sale in 2012 for all online orders. To just receive the caterpillars with food & a chart, the cost is $13. Last year we spent the $16 to get a butterfly house too. We didn't realize that the house was consumable. So we ended up buying a butterfly net house at our local retailer for $10, that we can reuse. (Earth's Birthday also sells the butterfly net house for $10) So, my suggestion to you, if you want to reuse the butterfly house for later, is to buy the $13 package and buy a separate butterfly house. (Just my own opinion).
I know there are other places that sell caterpillars out there. I've had friends order them from different sites. I just use EBP because they were referred to me by Sonlight Curriculum and I trust their opinion.
I love this project!! Can't wait to do it again this year!
Just some pointers:
1. You may want to use a penny or ruler to measure the growth of the caterpillars.
2. Take pictures!! (and video too if available)
3. Sugar water seemed to be their favorite thing to snack on, but EBP also suggests watermelon or oranges. We put in oranges along with the sugar water, but they preferred the sugar water.
4. It's fun to take them out and hold them, but don't do it for too long in your house. They may take their temporary freedom to a whole new level. And they're not easy to catch once they taste that freedom! (plus they poop red...not easy to clean up off carpet or furniture etc.)
5. I don't recommend keeping them in the butterfly house for over five days after they emerge. Ours started either fighting or 'knowing' each other and it was crazy in the butterfly house. They became very aggressive.
Below is last year's experience with the Painted Lady Caterpillars that we ordered.
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| The day they arrived. |
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| Can't stop looking at them |
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| Toward the end of the 3 weeks. Ready to form their chrysalis. |
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| We finally catch one emerging on camera. |
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| We were told to provide them oranges or watermelon for nutrition. They liked the oranges, but they liked the sugar water best. |
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| The underside of the butterflies wings |
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| The butterfly enjoying a little bit of freedom in the house. But not for too long!! |
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