How to Raise Monarch Butterflies: A Step-by-Step Guide for Kids

by Carol Pasternak

Overview

"The breezy and down-to-earth text ... nicely communicates the wonder ... Especially effective is the eight-pictured depiction of the development of the caterpillar into a chrysalis."
—School Library Journal

Observing a Monarch butterfly as it transforms itself from caterpillar to chrysalis to butterfly is among the most thrilling experiences that nature offers. Raising Monarch butterflies is made easy with the help of this detailed guide.

How to Raise Monarch Butterflies explains what threats Monarchs face today and how readers can help conserve the Monarch's feeding grounds from encroachment. Revel in one of the most remarkable miracles of nature.

This updated edition contains:

• More than 40 new colorful and detailed photos
• More secrets to help you find eggs and caterpillars
• Instructions on how to feed a monarch and more details on their care
• Expanded information on varieties and propagation of milkweed
• New page on the diverse insects in the milkweed patch
• New suggestions for starting a butterfly garden, including a large photograph of an outstanding Monarch Waystation.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781770850026
Publisher:	Firefly Books, Limited
Publication date:	03/08/2012
Pages:	48
Sales rank:	95,630
Product dimensions:	7.80(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.20(d)
Age Range:	6 - 12 Years

About the Author

Carol Pasternak is a photographer, personal trainer and educator who raises Monarch butterflies with her family in Toronto, Ontario.

Table of Contents

Introduction

The Amazing Monarch 4

What Makes a Monarch a Monarch?

Anatomy of a Monarch Butterfly 6

Raising Monarchs

What You'll Need 10

Finding Caterpillars 12

Taking Care of Your Caterpillars 14

The Great Egg Hunt 16

The Monarch Life Cycle

Here We Grow 20

The Chrysalis 22

The Monarch Emerges 24

Out in the World

Releasing Your Butterfly 28

Predators and Perils 30

Mating and Migration 32

The Incredible Journey 34

The Adventure Continues

Creating a Butterfly Garden 38

Milkweed Mania! 40

Conclusion

Saving the World for Butterflies 42

Resources 44

Glossary 46

Index 47

Editorial Reviews

This exciting new book is a great introduction to the amazing lives of Monarch butterflies, with detailed information on how to care for and raise the caterpillars. With many full-colour photographs illustrating every step and aspect of a Monarch's life and journey, this book is a great resource for educators, parents and monarch-lovers of all ages!

Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory

A book for children to learn about monarch butterflies, their lifecycle and the benefits of monarch butterflies to the environment. Includes step-by-step instructions for raising your own crop of butterflies in your home. Great for nature lovers young and old alike.

Metro Family Magazine (Oklahoma) - Mari Farthing

A step-by-step guide for children who are interested in the natural world. The book contains beautiful photographs illustrating the various stages of butterfly development. It is written in kid-friendly language and best of all, helps to enlarge the monarch population in your area. The book tells where to look for monarch eggs or larvae and how to care for and cultivate this magnificent insect.

National Gardening Association - Kim Haworth

Thoughtful inspiring and informative, this Canadian book will stimulate children to want to head out the door and look for Monarch butterflies.

North Bay Nugget

This guide for raising monarch butterflies gives clear directions accompanied by good, helpful, and beautiful photographs.... The book is well written, well illustrated, and very inviting. Readers will certainly want to try rearing monarchs after reading it. It is simple enough for young children, but not too simple for interested adults. Thus, the book should find a wide audience. I would recommend it for classrooms, libraries, and the general reader.

Science Books and Films - Linda Wiener

Learn everything you need to know about the monarch life cycle and how to find and raise monarchs from egg to adult butterfly. You will even learn how to cultivate a butterfly garden full of monarchs. The book features many beautiful photographs of the fascinating insect, but soon you'll be able to take some of your own. So don't forget a camera!

Green Books Time Magazine (Time for Kids)

Pasternak has written a clear, practical and family-friendly guide to raising butterflies, which includes plenty of compelling scientific information along the way and ends by explaining what we can do to save their habitat.

Washington Post - Julie Eilperin

An incredibly satisfying family activity that can encourage youngsters to look at nature with inquisitive, open eyes, raising monarch butterflies is an easy, outdoor pursuit. Pasternak's approachable book will certainly help families be rewarded with the wonder of metamorphosis.

Waste Management World - Lee Littlewood

Written in kid-friendly language.... The photography is outstanding. Parents and grandparents looking for something to do with the kids this summer should consider this great backyard project. Incredibly detailed, Pasternak's guide also spills with facts, close-ups and great websites to scour.

Waterloo Region Record - Jon Fear

Trust me — this is one of those books that belongs in every school and public library.

Bookends: A Booklist Online Blog - Cindy Dobrez and Lynn Rutan

An exquisite step-by-step guide... This book is the perfect summer companion for a young nature enthusiast!

Canadian Children's Book News - Amanda Cannon

Toronto author Carol Pasternak's love of monarch butterflies inspired this step-by-step guide for children. Written in kid-friendly language, it encourages youngsters six and up to help boost declining monarch populations by raising butterflies from eggs or caterpillars collected from roadsides and fields. The photography is outstanding. Incredibly detailed, Pasternak's guide also spills with facts, close-up photos and links to great websites.

Guelph Mercury - Brenda Hoerle

Spectacular photographs add much to this informative text... a valuable addition to an elementary school library.

Resource Links, Vol. 17 No. 5 - Carolyn Cutt

Carol Pasternak provides an easy-to-follow guide for children to participate in the life cycle of these beautiful insects.

North Shore News

It's the perfect step-by-step guide for children.

Waterloo Region-Record - Nancy Harper

A monarch enthusiast, Pasternak clearly wants to encourage readers to develop their own fascination through experience and further education.

Science Magazine - Sacha Vignieri

Kids who love wildlife will find much to learn in this informative and beautifully photographed book.

Sal's Fiction Addiction

One of the most remarkable changes in nature is how a caterpillar turns into a butterfly, and this book, filled with beautiful photographs, tells kids how that change takes place and why it's so important for the environment. The book's easy-to-follow instructions, from finding caterpillars or monarch eggs to caring for them, will inspire you.

Washington Post - Tracy Grant

Pasternak's clear explanations for each stage of raising a monarch are paired with rich, colourful photographs that make you want to run outside and explore. This text is simple enough for 8-year-olds and engaging enough for teenagers; self-contained enough to support a brand new enthusiast and detailed enough to include interesting facts for an experienced butterfly raiser. And both bug enthusiasts and avoiders will find the step-by-step instructions easy to follow for your month long journey. Also, there are suggestions of organizations or web links to go to for further information. A great resource for teachers and an engaging classroom library addition.

Canadian Teacher - Amanda Forbes

A perfect gift.

Tampa Bay Times - Monica Brandies

Everything you ever wanted to know about the Monarch Butterfly and more... Helpful photographs on each page show what to look for. Not just for kids.

Niagara Escarpment Views

Gr 4 Up—The monarch butterflies that hatch in the early summer live for two to three weeks, and a female can lay between 400 and 500 eggs. Collecting these eggs or the newly hatched caterpillars and providing them with milkweed leaves-their main food-can help increase the number of late summer and early fall monarchs that live for eight or nine months and make the autumn migration to Mexico. This breezy and down-to-earth text ("greenish poops-called frass") presents mostly generalizations but nicely communicates the wonder of the transformative nature of this species. Especially effective is the eight-picture depiction of the development of the caterpillar into a chrysalis. The full-color photographs are crisp and sharp for the most part and illustrate the life cycle of the monarch and the many tasks that have to be done to ensure that the caterpillars thrive and become butterflies. This work-intensive activity might be better suited to students in a classroom than an individual at home. With so many similar books about the life cycle of the monarch and related crafts and activities, this title becomes an additional purchase.—Frances E. Millhouser, formerly at Chantilly Regional Library, Fairfax County, VA

School Library Journal

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