Found!

I had just about given up all hope. Duckie was no where to be found. Meanwhile, Chuckie hatched, gobbled up his egg and promptly disappeared as well. Where were these guys hiding? I began to fear they had plunged to their deaths in the water bowl, or maybe our habitat was housing some predatorial bug that preyed specifically on monarch larvae. Woe were we.

Sunday morning I decided enough was enough. They must have fallen into the water and drowned. I had been actively caterpillar hunting for three days without any sign of their presence. I took all the milkweed out of our caterpillar home and started uncurling the leaves one last time. I definitely did not want to throw the little guys away if they had stuck around. Lo and behold! There was Duckie, right where I had looked zillions of times, tucked in a cozy spot inside a leaf. And creeping around near-by? Chuckie!

Owie and I did a little dance of joy and then stuck all of the milkweed right back where it belonged. We didn't want to disrupt meal time anymore than we already had. It's a good thing we kept studying up while our little friends were AWOL. We have learned so much about larvae, pupae, molting, chrysalises, metamorphosis, proboscises. It's crazy to hear O use some of these words. We are having so much fun learning about the miracle of God's creation!

Duckie is the big guy; Chuckie is tinier up above Duckie