Looking for butterfly information? Check out these websites!

The Internet makes learning easy and if you're a butterfly enthusiast like me, the web offers tons of information for getting to know these beauties. I have found a number of websites that are great resources for learning about butterflies and caterpillars.

One of my favorite websites is Butterflies and Moths of North America, which is a great site for identifying butterflies, moths and caterpillars.

Check out the article Great Websites for Butterfly Enthusiasts for more information and sites that can help you figure out what's flying and crawling in your garden. Happy learning!

Red Spotted Purple butterfly -- Photo by Tammy Lee Morris

Life cycle of the Monarch butterfly

The Monarch butterfly is the state butterfly of my home state of Illinois. I enjoy watching these pretties and observing their life cycle. Check out these photos of the Monarch butterfly life cycle that I took last spring.

First butterfly of the summer: Great Spangled Fritillary

My kids found a chrysalis out in the yard attached to a bag of dog food. I cut around the chrysalis and put it in my butterfly hut. Wasn't sure of the species so we waited to see what type of butterfly emerged. What came out was a Great Spangled Fritillary - Speyeria cybele, Family Nymphalidae, Subfamily Heliconiinae -- This one is male and the caterpillars feed on Viola species.

This was a great start to the summer!