The orange barred sulphur picked an ideal spot to start its chrysalis – right outside the front door. The chrysalis is really need. It has a silk pad and a silk girdle. Once the chrysalis is finished it will either be a green, or pinkish color.
The orange barred sulphur has arrived, most likely minutes after I walked away. In a few hours it will have dried its wings and ready to be released.
The butterfly house is coming alive with new life this morning. Here’s an orange barred sulphur nearing emergence. It was green last night!
Have you ever witnessed an orange barred sulphur create its chrysalis?
I am happy to say I finally was able to witness the transformation, not once, but twice on the same day. I always take one last peek into the butterfly house after I walk my dog the final time at night. Well, it completely paid off this time! I always wondered when the magic happened as the last peek at night the caterpillars were still hanging by their silk girdle, and the morning the gorgeous green, sometimes pinkish, chrysalis would be complete.
I have to say the silk girdle is no joke. It has incredible strength as the caterpillar moved in all directions possible as the chrysalis slowly spread the length of the caterpillar’s body. The first chrysalis I recorded, and the second one I captured through photographs. In a matter of minutes the chrysalis was complete. I of course stopped taking pictures as the wiggling slowed, so in this series I do not have a photograph of what the final chrysalis looks like.
It just goes to show what you can witness when you slow down enough . . . nature is incredible.
