Caterpillar Update #4

In addition, here are some observations recorded by Alon C.:

Today there was a strange thing. The butterflies had four legs today. I felt the butterfly today. It was ticklish. 

Alon C. and Jordan made some very good observations about the Painted Lady butterflies.  They noticed that the butterflies appear to have only 4 legs, but we had learned that all insects have 6 legs.  Chloe then told us that she had read in a book that their two front legs are very short and against their bodies.  Ms. Guerriero then read some information to the class.  She confirmed what Chloe had told the class:  some butterflies do appear to have only 4 legs. 

A photo of the underside of the butterfly's body.  Only 4 legs can be seen.

We have also learned that butterflies are harmless to people. They are unable to bite or sting. We wanted the children to experience this for themselves. So, everyone was invited, one at a time, to gently place their hand in the flight cage so they could hold a butterfly. Most of the children in the class were willing to try it.  The children were very careful not to touch the wings. Doing so may damage the wings, and the butterfly would be unable to fly. The children appeared to enjoy holding the butterflies and there were lots of smiles for the camera!