Last month, my brother, Aiminh, and I headed over to Ardenwood Farm in Fremont. In addition to old-timey setting, Ardenwood Farm is also home to many monarch butterflies. These particular butterflies started their migration from somewhere near Canada and ended up at Ardenwood and various locations down the coast.
In addition to a migration destination, Ardenwood Farm provides a good year-round habit for the monarch because of the abundant milkweed and eucalyptus. The monarch lays its eggs on the milkweed plant, so once the eggs hatch, the caterpillars can start their binge eating session. In a little over a week, the caterpillar, after eating its weight in milkweed daily, is over 2000 times its original size. It then enters the transformation stage before emerging as an adult butterfly. We only saw the caterpillars and the adult butterflies (no eggs or chrysalis).
In addition to a migration destination, Ardenwood Farm provides a good year-round habit for the monarch because of the abundant milkweed and eucalyptus. The monarch lays its eggs on the milkweed plant, so once the eggs hatch, the caterpillars can start their binge eating session. In a little over a week, the caterpillar, after eating its weight in milkweed daily, is over 2000 times its original size. It then enters the transformation stage before emerging as an adult butterfly. We only saw the caterpillars and the adult butterflies (no eggs or chrysalis).
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