The End of Our Butterfly Journey

On Easter Monday, four of our butterflies were released from the net. The oldest was about 5 days old by then and it was important to release them before they began to lay eggs. I had heard that the butterflies often land on little hands and faces before they fly away so I asked my niece to help me to see if this was true. 

The butterflies all landed on her hand before flying away so this story does seem to be true! The last butterfly didn't seem ready to go just yet, he was having a little trouble trying to fly away so we kept him for an extra day and released him on Tuesday. Interestingly, when he was taken out of the net, he flew off in the same direction as the ones released yesterday.
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The Last Butterfly

Our Painted Lady butterflies can be found on every continent except for Australia and Antarctica. They are very clever and can live in a variety of different environments. After being released, they can often be seen in the area for a few days afterwards so I'll keep an eye out for them. It's a pity we didn't get to finish this as a class but hopefully you all enjoy the photos!