How to Feed Caterpillars

Caterpillars are very interesting and easy to keep pets for both children and adults. As long as they are provided with enough food, they will not require much care. And what’s the best thing? You will watch the nymphs or worms wrap themselves in a delicate cocoon, and then a few days or weeks later, they transform into beautiful butterflies like magic. What better reward than that? Read on to learn how to properly care for caterpillars and turn them into butterflies.

Table of Contents

Find caterpillars

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Choose the right season of the year to find caterpillars. The best times to hunt for caterpillars are spring and summer, as most butterflies and moths will lay eggs around this time. However, there are a few species – like caterpillars – that often appear in the fall. Winter is the only time of year where you won’t find caterpillars.

In the wild, caterpillar survival rates are 2%, which means only 2 out of every 100 eggs a female moth lays survive to adulthood. This is because a large number of predators include caterpillars on their list of food sources. So, when you keep caterpillars as a pet, you also give them a higher chance of survival.
Note that fall caterpillars will usually pupate during the winter, so you’ll have to wait much longer to see them morph into butterflies than spring and summer butterflies. This time is usually about 2-3 weeks.

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Look for caterpillars on host plants. The easiest places to find caterpillars are on host plants, as they are often near food sources. If you’re not picky about what type of caterpillar to keep, you can find it on the leaves of any tree in your garden or park. But if you want to raise a certain species of caterpillar/butterfly/moth, you need to find special plants. Here are some of the most common species:

Monarch butterfly is most commonly found on milkweed.
Swallowtail caterpillars (Spicebush Swallowtail) are most commonly found on the Spicebush tree.
Zebra Swallowtail caterpillars most commonly found on American papaya (Paaw Paw)
Black Swallowtail caterpillars are most commonly found on herbs such as parsley and dill.
The Luna Moth moth is most commonly found on the leaves of walnut and Sweet Gum trees.
Cecropia Moths moths, Viceroy butterflies and Red-Spotted Purple butterflies are most commonly found on cherry tree leaves. ^{[1] X Research Source}

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Order special caterpillars online. If you want to keep unique species of caterpillars, or if you can’t find them in the wild, order caterpillars from specialists or buy them online.

You can buy caterpillars or order caterpillars in their larval stage, before they even hatch. If you’re just interested in butterflies, you can order pupae – and then just wait for them to appear.
Some of the most popular caterpillars are the monarch butterfly (which you can order at www.MonarchWatch.org), and the Painted Lady caterpillar. Painted Lady caterpillars are easy to keep, as they are placed in a growth medium and nurtured to pupate, so you don’t need to find a host plant for them. ^{[1] X Research Source}

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Be careful when handling caterpillars. Once you have found a caterpillar, you must hold it properly. If you try to pull the caterpillar up, it can cling very tightly to the standing surface and very easily injure, even cut off its leg if you keep pulling.

The best way to pick up a caterpillar and move it is to place a piece of paper or leaf in front of the caterpillar, then gently push behind it. The caterpillar will crawl onto the paper or leaf to avoid being touched. Once there, you can move the caterpillar on its temporary perching branch.
Remember not to drop caterpillars – they can die when dropped from above, even a few centimeters tall.
If you need to touch the caterpillar, it’s best to wash your hands first. Caterpillars are very fragile and can pick up bacteria from human skin.
Some caterpillars have sharp hairs or spines that can itch or even sting your skin. Therefore, it is best to avoid touching these caterpillars with your bare hands. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Make a home for caterpillars

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Keep the caterpillars in a suitable container. Caterpillars don’t need fancy “homes” – a clean 4-liter jar or a small aquarium is just fine. These containers are easy to clean, and it’s also easy to watch your caterpillars.

Cover the mouth of the jar with a piece of cloth or mesh and tie it with an elastic to allow air to circulate. Don’t just poke holes in the lid of the jar (as advised by some sites) because caterpillars can try to get through these holes and get injured by the sharp edges.
If you want to keep more than one caterpillar, you need to give each one a space three times its body size for them to move around. That way you won’t have to worry about the caterpillar’s house being too cramped.

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Line the bottom of the jar with paper towels or soil. You should line the “floor” of the caterpillar with a layer of paper towels to absorb moisture and catch the caterpillar’s waste. Thus, you can easily clean the jar by discarding the dirty paper and replacing it with new paper.

However, you should only line the bottom of the jar with paper towels if you know that the caterpillars you are raising will pupate on the ground.
If you keep pupating caterpillars in the ground (or if you’re not sure), you should spread a layer of soil or sand about 5cm thick at the bottom of the jar. This way, the caterpillar will have a place to burrow.
The layer of soil or sand should be slightly moist – but not so moist that it clings to the walls of the jar. Caterpillars are quite sensitive to moisture. ^{[1] X Research Source}

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Put a few sticks in the jar. Placing a few sticks in the caterpillar’s home is also a good idea for a number of reasons:

First, the caterpillars will have room to crawl up if they need to reach for food.
Second, caterpillars can choose to hang themselves on rods and pupate. Therefore, you should place the stick in a stable position so that it does not tip over.
Third, when the pupa turns into a butterfly, it will need a place to spread its wings and dry.

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Maintain humidity in the jar. Most caterpillars prefer a slightly humid environment, and the best way to get the desired humidity is to mist it with a spray bottle from time to time.

However, you need to be careful not to let the caterpillar get wet, as too much humidity can cause mold to grow inside and on the caterpillars. ^{[1] X Research Source}

Feed the caterpillars

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Find the caterpillar’s host plant. The caterpillar’s job is just to eat, eat and eat, so the most important thing when taking care of caterpillars is to constantly provide them with a source of fresh food.

The first thing you should do is give the caterpillar a few leaves of the tree you found them on, as it is most likely their host plant.
Watch the caterpillars to see if they eat the leaves you give them. If the caterpillar does eat – congratulations – you have found its host! Now you just need to provide a source of fresh leaves until your caterpillar pupates.

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If you don’t know the caterpillar’s host plant, try giving them a few different types of leaves. Caterpillars are very picky eaters, and each species only eats certain types of plants. The reality is that most caterpillars will starve to death rather than eat strange foods. So, if the worm refuses to eat the leaves you find it on, you need to find its right food source through the testing process.

In this case, it’s best to pick a few different types of leaves where you found the caterpillar and put them in a jar, then watch closely to see if it eats any leaves. If so, you can leave out the other leaves and simply feed the caterpillar the leaves of its choice.
If you find it difficult to find the right plants to feed your caterpillars, you can consult a plant and animal guide such as Peterson First Guide to Caterpillars , (Peterson’s Caterpillar First Guide) or Caterpillars of Eastern Forests (The Caterpillars of Eastern Forests). butterflies in the eastern forests). These guidebooks will provide information on each caterpillar’s favorite food sources, saving you time experimenting. ^{[1] X Research Source}
If you can’t find the manuals above, try using some of the most common food sources of caterpillars such as trees: cherries, oaks, willows, pythons, birch, apples, and birch. You should also try getting the flower in addition to the leaf, as some caterpillars like to eat this part of the plant. ^{[2] X Research Source}
If you can’t find a plant that your caterpillar likes to eat, it’s probably best to drop it back. That way it can at least find suitable food on its own, or else it will starve to death.

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Keep the leaves fresh. Caterpillars will not eat leaves that have been aged or dried out, so it is important that you provide them with a constant source of fresh green leaves. How often to provide fresh leaves depends on the species of plant – some plants can last up to a week, others need to change leaves daily.

A good way to preserve food is to put it in a jar of water and place it in the caterpillar’s “house”. Water will help the leaves stay fresh and green longer.
However, sometimes the caterpillars can slip off the leaves, fall into the water and drown. To prevent this, you should use paper towels or cotton lint around the petioles. This will be safer for the caterpillars. ^{[2] X Research Source}
You can also buy cheap flower arrangements at the florist to put leaves into them. The mouth of these tubes is very narrow so the risk of caterpillars falling into the water can be reduced.
When feeding the caterpillars with new leaves, be sure to remove the old and dry leaves. Clean the caterpillar tank, removing worm waste or other debris.
Another thing to keep in mind is that spiders or other predators can hide in the leaves. If this is the case, the caterpillars can be eaten by them when you put the leaves in the vase, which you probably don’t want at all! So you need to carefully check all branches and leaves before feeding the caterpillars. ^{[1] X Research Source}

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You do not need to provide water for the caterpillars. Caterpillars have no need to drink water – they absorb water from food.

However, if the caterpillars seem a bit dry or want to increase the humidity in the vase, wash the leaves and put them in the vase without drying them.
Drops of water remaining on the leaves will provide the necessary moisture for the caterpillars.

Turn caterpillars into butterflies

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Don’t worry if the caterpillar stops eating and becomes lethargic. Don’t worry if your caterpillar suddenly stops eating, becomes sluggish or starts to change color – it’s probably just preparing to shed or pupate, so this is completely normal.

Caterpillars may also be more active than usual, constantly crawling around in the jar. In this case, the caterpillar is probably looking for a place to pupate.
Unfortunately, these symptoms can also be signs of a sick caterpillar, so you should avoid touching it during this time. Wait and see if your caterpillar successfully pupates.
If you keep a lot of caterpillars and one dies, remove the carcass from the pot immediately to prevent the disease from spreading. ^{[1] X Research Source}

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Make sure the capsule is hanging above the ground. When the caterpillar is ready, it pupates and is beginning the process of turning into a butterfly or moth. The moth will bury itself in the soil to make a cocoon, while the caterpillar will pupate hanging above the ground.

You don’t need to pay attention to the pods on the ground, but you may need to move or re-hang the pods if they’re in the wrong position or if they’ve fallen out of place.
If you find the pupa in a place where there isn’t enough room to spread its wings when it turns into a butterfly, it’s probably best to move it somewhere else. Hold the capsule gently and hang it on a stick or attach it to the side of the jar.
You can do this by threading a thread through the pointed end of the capsule, or inserting a small knotted needle into it and hanging it in a suitable place. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

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Rinse the jar and keep the moisture in it. Once the caterpillar has pupated, you should clean the caterpillar tank, removing waste and old food. Although the pupa is still alive, it does not need food and water.

Leave the sticks in the jar when cleaning. The pupae will need these sticks when they turn into butterflies, as they will land on trees to spread their wings. If the butterfly has nothing to land on, its wings will not grow out normally and it will die. ^{[4] X Research Sources}
In addition, you need to maintain the humidity by checking every few days. If the air in the jar is too dry, the pupae will dry out, but too much humidity will also cause the pupae to become moldy. Both of these situations prevent the pupation of the butterfly.
If the soil at the bottom of the pot is too dry, spray some water on the soil. Wipe clean if you see dirt on the wall of the jar.
Consult your caterpillar/butterfly manual for exact optimum temperature and humidity for the pupae you are keeping.

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Wait for the pupa to turn dark or transparent. Now all that remains is to wait! Some butterflies and moths will emerge within eight days, but others can take months or even years to complete.

If you catch a caterpillar in the fall, it is likely that it will spend the winter months pupating and only transform into a butterfly in the spring – a process called “winter avoidance”.
Some of the signs that a butterfly is about to emerge is that the pupa turns dark, even becoming transparent.
Pay close attention to the pupa from this point on, as the butterfly can emerge from the pupa in seconds, and you won’t want to miss it!
Since the moth’s cocoon is underground, you won’t be able to observe its changes.
If the pupa turns very dark, it may be a sign that it is dead. You can test it by gently bending the pupa at its abdomen – if the pupa stays that way, it’s most likely dead. ^{[1] X Research Source}

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Release the butterfly. When the pupa turns into a butterfly, it will crawl onto the stick and hang upside down on the stick until its wings dry out and unfold. This is a very important process and can take many hours.

When the butterfly begins to flap its wings and fly around the vase, it is time to let the butterfly fly away. The butterfly doesn’t like being trapped, and its wings can be damaged if it continues to beat the wall of the vase to find a way out. ^{[3] X Research Sources}
Take the butterfly jar outside, go to the place where you originally caught the caterpillar, open the lid and let the butterfly fly away happily.

Advice

Do not place the caterpillar tank near the air conditioner.
You can find caterpillars in crevices in trees, under logs or rocks, on sidewalks and parking lots.
If you keep caterpillars indoors, place the caterpillars in a cool room near a window.
Whatever container you use as your caterpillar’s home, you need to provide plenty of fresh air for them.
Drop two or more caterpillars into the vase so they don’t get lonely.
Grow caterpillars in pots that are 3 times larger than their body size.
You need to learn a little about the type of caterpillar you are raising to avoid being bitten or stung!

Warning

Do not hold the caterpillar the wrong way, as some caterpillars will bite or sting you.

Steps