From public library to butterfly hatchery. That’s the role taken on by both libraries in Timmins.
Louise Gaudette is the branch head at the C.M. Shields Library in South Porcupine. She says her library and the main branch in Timmins now each have about 17 caterpillars that will become painted lady butterflies – one of the most common species of butterfly in the world.
“Libraries are all about learning and resources and this was something that we wanted to experiment with the children and show them an educational process that you can grab from a book, but we can also see it physically as well,” Gaudette remarks.
The caterpillars are now being fed special food in individual plastic containers.
“And once they form their cocoons on their lids,” Gaudette picks up, “we will put them in a flight cage, which we will have to spray with water every morning, just like the morning dew and from there, they’re going to emerge as a butterfly.”
The hope is that they’re in chrysalis form by the end of the week, then butterflies a week or ten days later. A few days after that, they’ll be released into the wild.