50 Fun Butterfly Facts for Kids
Butterfly facts for kids are a great way to get children and students excited about bugs, insects, and other small creatures that live outside.
These beautiful insects are so interesting because they start out looking like a worm and then turn into a totally different insect with wings! The chrysalis or cocoon stage is really fascinating for young ones as well, especially when they begin hatching.
One of the great things about butterflies is how accessible they are. You can head to your local park, backyard, or school playground to see some in person. Learning about butterflies and caterpillars will always be exciting, but seeing them in person adds a new level to the fascination.
If you are looking for some amazing facts about butterflies and caterpillars to add to your butterfly discovery time, check out the interesting facts below.
Easy Butterfly Facts for Kids
This section has 10 easy to understand butterfly facts for kids. They are the ten interesting facts found in the Building Sentences Butterfly Facts printable worksheets.
- A butterfly is an insect.
- Butterflies have four wings.
- Butterflies cannot hear.
- A butterfly has three body parts.
- Butterflies like the sun.
- Butterflies lay eggs.
- A caterpillar hatches from a butterfly egg.
- The caterpillar makes a chrysalis.
- The caterpillar becomes a butterfly.
- Butterflies drink nectar.
Species of Butterflies
Here, you can enjoy some fun facts about the different kinds of butterflies.
- Monarch Butterflies – The Monarch butterfly is called Danaus plexippus by scientists. Adult monarchs are found in North America – from Canada all the way down to the Gulf of Mexico!
- Swallowtail Butterflies – These butterflies can be found on every continent except Antarctica!
- Hairstreak Butterflies – The Hairstreak butterfly can be found in South America and tropical rainforests.
- Blue Morpho Butterflies – This is one of the largest butterflies! It can have a wingspan of 8 inches.
- Western Pygmy Blue Butterflies – This is the smallest butterfly in North America and the United States.
- Skipper Butterflies – These are the fastest butterflies!
- Glass Wing Butterflies – This butterfly species has transparent wings and can be found in Costa Rica.
Butterfly Body Parts
A butterfly has three main body parts. They are the head, thorax (the chest), and abdomen. Some of the parts below are attached to one of the three main body parts.
- Head: This part of the body is so important for their survival.
- Antennae: These help butterflies smell!
- Proboscis: This tube-like tongue helps butterflies suck up flower nectar and tree sap!
- Compound eyes: These help them see in all directions at the same time!
- Legs: The pairs of legs help them smell and taste food.
- Wings: A butterfly’s wings have tiny scales that give them those beautiful colors.
- Digestive Tract: This is a part of its abdomen and helps the butterfly digest all of that flower nectar.
- Spiracles: These are openings on a butterfly’s side. They let the butterfly breathe.
- Reproductive Organs: Adult butterflies have reproductive organs on the outside of their bodies. Males have a pair of pinchers for clasping and female butterflies have a tube that lets them lay eggs.
The Building Sentences worksheets are great. However, if you’re working with younger children that aren’t ready for building and writing sentences, you will like the Making Words Butterfly Set.
Life Cycle of a Butterfly
Young children typically learn about the butterfly life cycle in kindergarten. However, it’s also common to study the lifecycle of a butterfly in PreK through second grade.
The butterfly has four stages of life:
- Egg: The egg portion of a butterfly’s life is usually around a week long. They are very , very small!
- Larva (caterpillar): The caterpillar hatches from the egg after about a week. It is very small. It will eat a lot before it enters the next stage and will multiply in size. The first thing that it eats is usually the shell of the egg it hatched from! During the caterpillar stage, it will have multiplied in size.
- Pupa (chrysalis): Nest, the caterpillar will make a silk mat, string it around its body, and attach itself to a branch or host plant. This is the chrysalis. This stage is around two weeks long.
- Adult Butterfly: After the pupa stage, the butterfly will exit the chrysalis. When it comes out, its wings are crumpled! The butterfly will hang upside to help them straighten. Once the butterfly wings have dried from the sun, these beautiful creatures take off for their first flight.
Predators of Butterflies
Butterflies have several different predators. They usually include:
- Larger insects
- Birds
- Spiders
- Lizards
- Small mammals
How do butterflies avoid their predators?
- The food they eat: Some species of caterpillars, like the monarch caterpillar, eat milkweed during that stage of life. This can make the butterfly smell and taste like milkweed which many predators do not like.
- Color: A butterfly’s bright colors can scare off certain predators. However, their their bright color can also attract some predators.
- Hiding: Some butterflies have very brightly colored wings. This makes hiding very difficult. Other species have wings specifically made for camouflage.
Caterpillar Facts
We can’t learn about butterflies without learning come caterpillar facts, too!
- Caterpillar bodies are very, very soft!
- Caterpillars have six pairs of small eyes!
- Caterpillars have tiny hairs all over their bodies.
- To avoid being eaten by predators, caterpillars will play dead.
- Caterpillars breathe through small holes called spiracles – just like butterflies!
- Most caterpillars eat plants. Some may eat other insects.
- Caterpillars can be very destructive to your garden!
- Caterpillars have to eat a lot to move into the next stage of the life cycle. Scientists call them “eating machines”.
- Caterpillars are caterpillars for up to four weeks. Then they move into the pupa stage.
- A lot of caterpillars are nocturnal! This means they are awake during the night.
- Caterpillars have almost 4,000 muscles in their bodies!
Before you go, here are more posts you’ll enjoy:
Butterflies and Caterpillars: Books, poems, and activities
50 Easy Mother’s Day Gift Ideas
Caterpillar Crafts for Preschool Kids
20 Free Building Sentences Worksheets
Butterfly Facts for Kids
