DAYS 18-20: Adults Emerging and Time-lapse Footage (5-10 min)
1. Students should begin to see adult butterflies emerging after about 9 or 10 days in the chrysalis. The chrysalis will begin to turn transparent, and you should be able to see the blacks and reds of the adult wing through the chrysalis skin. We failed to capture this process on an appropriate time lapse, as is apparent in the movies below. All but one of the butterflies emerged over the weekend!
Missing this event firsthand was frustrating to the students. However, it provides for a good lesson about the limitations of scientific research. Also, they did capture some great footage of a chrysalis becoming increasingly transparent.
Watch adult Painted Lady emerging from chrysalis in Quicktime (.mov)
Watch the same movie in Windows Media Player (.avi)
2. Convince the students that now is the time to make their most careful observations, so that this event can be captured. If students notice changes in one of the chrysali, this should be repositioned in front of the QX3 microscope. Start recording a time lapse movie, and continue to reset until the adult emerges. Let the recording run after school to check the next morning, if possible.
A useful frame setting would be one picture every 20 seconds.
3. Once the adult butterflies have emerged, ask students to sketch them and make observations about their behavior.
Student Sketch of Adult Painted Lady They should be able to watch a butterfly feed on the prepared nectar using its proboscis as a coiled straw. My students used the QX3 to make handheld movies of this behavior.
Watch movie of butterfly feeding in Quicktime (.mov)
Watch movie in Windows Media Player (.avi)
Students should observe the way the adult will pump its wings as it drinks, creating negative and positive pressure, which allows it to suck in the sugar-water. Also note the number of appendages, the use of its antennae, and its distinct markings.
Set up the spotlights on top of the habitat, and observe how the butterflies become more lively, fluttering around to a greater degree and resting near the light. Ask students to make inferences about this observed behavior, and to note these as inferences in their journals.
