That's 28 days ago.
Clever thing, really, to have stayed warmly safe and encapsulated through the worst of our cold Winter weather. Ok, yes, I did turn the heater on in the room for them on the very coldest days, and I did turn them towards every bit of sunlight that came into the room on sunny days.
The second chrysalis is not yet showing signs of colouring, but it can't be long now.
I have never had any chrysalis go on for so long, so this is a learning curve for me.
During Summer when its warm the chrysalis process takes about 10 days and, in previous years when they have formed their chrysalis late in the season, it's been 15 - 18 days. But 28 days? Wow, I have never seen that before.
So what is the norm?
How long does it take for a Monarch butterfly to leave the chrysalis? | "The complete process from egg to butterfly is weather dependent and also depends on the regional climate. It can take about four weeks in the peak of the summer in warmer climates. The egg takes 5 to 10 days, the larva/caterpillar and pupa/chrysalis each take about 10 to 14 days. In winter, autumn and spring it takes a lot longer (if it happens at all – they continue to breed in Northland, where it remains warmer than the rest of the country). The process slows down in cool weather; in this way we can ‘use’ the climatic conditions to speed up or slow down the creation of a butterfly. When the pupa is ready to hatch, the shell will be transparent and you can see the dark colours of the butterfly’s wings folded up inside. The transformation happens suddenly and if you turn away for a few minutes you will usually come back to find a butterfly." REF: Monarch Butterfly New Zealand Trust |