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Life Science: Brassica & Butterfly System

Track Our Progress: Brassica and Butterfly Life Cycles

Click on the days below to see our Brassicas and butterflies develop through their life cycles. Then, see an animation of the entire fast-plant life cycle in timelapse, at the bottom of the page.

See the Life Cycle activity instructions for questions to consider, use the Brassica & Butterfly Data Sheet (PDF) to record your observations, then share your results on the discussion board.

FAST PLANT (Brassica rapa)	CABBAGE WHITE BUTTERFLY (Pieris rapae)
Day 0: Seeds planted	Day 0: Eggs
Day 2: Seeds germinate	Day 2
Day 4: vegetative growth	Day 4: first larval stage emerges
Day 6	Day 6: first larval stage feeds
Day 8	Day 8: First larval stage molts to second larval stage
Day 10: Flower bud development	Day 10: Second larval stage feeds
Day 12	Day 12: Second larval stage molts to third larval stage
Day 14: Flowering and pollination	Day 14: fourth larval stage molts to fifth larval stage
Day 16	Day 16: Fourth larval stage feeds
Day 18	Day 18: Fifth larval stage feeds
Day 20: Seed pods form	Day 20: Pupae form
Day 22: Seeds develop in pods	Day 22: Pupae developing
Day 24	Day 24
Day 26	Day 26: emergence imminent
Day 28	Day 28
Day 30	Day 30: Butterfly emerges
Day 32	Day 32: Butterflies feed
Day 34: Senescence and seed ripening	Day 34
Day 36	Day 36: butterflies mate
Day 38	Day 38: Egg-laying
Day 40: Death and seeds ripe	Day 40: Cycle begins again

START fast plant animation | STOP fast plant animation

 

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