Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

Hello! My name is Ashley, and I am a 12th grader doing a science project on butterflies. I am using this kit

http://www.amazon.com/Insect-Lore-Live- ... terfly+kit

For my experiment, I have to keep the temperature colder than room temperature and the humidity higher than the room. How do I do that if the case is a type of netting with holes? Thank you for looking at my question!

-Ashley

Hi Ashley-

According to www.livebutterflygarden.com, " At a normal room temperature of 72 to 78 degrees Fahrenheit, the caterpillars should take approximately 7 to 10 days to make the fascinating change into chrysalides. The caterpillars will climb to the top of the cup and hang down first. It is crucial that they not be disturbed at this point as this is their most vulnerable stage. Although this will seem to be a time of resting in the butterfly's development, it is really going to be a time of rapid change. Within the chrysalid, the old body parts of the caterpillar will undergo a remarkable transformation into the beautiful parts that will make up the butterfly."

Also, according to their FRQ section, they say that "It is very important that you always keep your caterpillar containers upright, indoors and out of direct sunlight! Direct sunlight will cause the interior of the cups to heat up and condensation can form within the container."

If you encounter any problems with your kit, I suggest that you go to www.livebutterflygarden.com and check out their FRQ questions and answers.

Good luck!

-Grace

But my experiment requires me to change some environmental conditions. How do I manipulate the humidity and temperature of the butterfly netting?

-Ashley

Hi Ashley,

Grace has already given you some good advice. In response to your question, you can use some simple tricks to change the temperature and humidity of your butterfly treatments.

Making the temperature colder than room temperature could be difficult, but you can use an infrared heat lamp (something sold at pet stores, for keeping lizards warm) to make one treatment warmer. I would worry that something like a fan or air conditioner will change more than temperature because it will blow air past the treatment, creating convection and potentially drying things out.

For humidity, you can get a spray bottle from a garden center, and set the spray nozzle to "mist." Then just spray water on your humid treatment at regular intervals (say, every 24 hours). That will increase the humidity in that butterfly net.

I hope this helps. Please post again (in this same thread) if you have more questions.

Heather