Last weekend when our little family went on an adventure to Heart Lake, we captured a caterpillar to take home and observe. Little did we know what type of caterpillar we were going to be observing. After some research, we found out our caterpillar is a western tent caterpillar.
And lucky for us, it was ready to start spinning its cocoon the next day! The cocoon is very different from the type the monarch butterfly makes. (Sienna observed the transformation of the monarch last year at her preschool.)
This cocoon is more like a spider web. Sorry the photos aren't the best, but it was difficult to take a good one with the glare.
When researching, we also found out that the caterpillar spins its cocoon in mid-June and emerges 7-10 days later as an adult moth. We will share our moth soon!
