Department of Energy Argonne National Laboratory Office of Science NEWTON's Homepage NEWTON's Homepage
NEWTON, Ask A Scientist!
NEWTON Home Page NEWTON Teachers Visit Our Archives Ask A Question How To Ask A Question Question of the Week Our Expert Scientists Volunteer at NEWTON! Frequently Asked Questions Referencing NEWTON About NEWTON About Ask A Scientist Education At Argonne Cocoon and Metamorphosis 
Name: Alexa
Status: N/A
Age: N/A
Location: N/A
Country: N/A
Date: N/A
Question:
I found a cocoon on a bush with hardly any leaves. The cocoon was light tan in color. I put it in my bug case and brought it inside to watch. The next morning it began moving and soon I could see what was inside. It came out of half the cocoon and stopped. A couple of days later it came out the rest of the way. Now it is a dark reddish brown color, but it still appears to be a cocoon - is this possible?

Replies:
Once the butterfly or moth comes out of the cocoon, It will sit there for a bit to dry it's wings before it tries to fly. The cocoon will still be left there and will eventually dry and darken!

Grace Fields

Click here to return to the Zoology Archives

NEWTON is an electronic community for Science, Math, and Computer Science K-12 Educators, sponsored and operated by Argonne National Laboratory's Educational Programs, Andrew Skipor, Ph.D., Head of Educational Programs.

For assistance with NEWTON contact a System Operator (help@newton.dep.anl.gov), or at Argonne's Educational Programs

NEWTON AND ASK A SCIENTIST
Educational Programs
Building 360
9700 S. Cass Ave.
Argonne, Illinois
60439-4845, USA
Update: June 2012
Weclome To Newton

Argonne National Laboratory