The Butterfly Life Cycle

The Butterfly Life Cycle

The Life Cycle A monarch butterfly has four stages in its life cycle.

Egg A female monarch butterfly lays an egg on a leaf. A caterpillar grows inside the tiny egg. The egg hatches in three to twelve days.

The hungry caterpillar eats all the time. First, the caterpillar eats its own eggshell. Then, the caterpillar eats the leaf It is on.

The caterpillar grows quickly. Its skin does not grow. The caterpillar's skin splits and peels away.

New skin is under the old skin. The caterpillar sheds its skin four to six times. The caterpillar grows for two to four weeks.