30 Days. 30 Bugs. Teaching kids all the YIKES about the Oregon Swallowtail Butterfly…
During June, I will be offering some pretty interesting bugs to you and your kids… bugs that will excite and entertain kids while teaching them. Each and every little word or fun piece of information is a building block to love of learning and literacy.
Come along for the YIKES! It’s gonna be a buggah!
Let’s have a little fun, a little learning and a little YIKES! today with the OREGON SWALLOWTAIL BUTTERFLY:
In 1979, the Oregon Swallowtail Butterfly (Papilio oregonius) was designated the official Oregon State Insect.
That same year, this lovely butterfly was printed on a 13 cent U.S. Postage Stamp…
The Oregon Swallowtail Butterfly is a native of the Northwest, living only in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and south-central British Columbia. It is big, beautiful and bright, with its yellow body with black stripes; and with its 2.5 – 4 inch wingspan, considered a strong flier.
The Oregon Swallowtail Butterfly lives where artemisia grows, near the Columbia River and its tributaries. Artemisia dracunculus (wild tarragon) is the host plant for the Oregon Swallowtail Butterfly Caterpillar…
The adult Oregon Swallowtail Butterfly “drinks” nectar from balsam root, purple sage and phlox.
I don’t think there is a YIKES! for this beautiful creature. Do you?
Introduce your kids to the Oregon Swallowtail Butterfly. You may want to check out this website of State Insects to find your own state’s insect. Kids love discovering interesting tidbits about their states. Go for it!
It’s also interesting to note that the State of Oregon takes note of its symbolic species. According to Oregon.gov:
Oregon celebrated its 150th birthday in the year 2009. In celebration of Oregon’s Sesquicentennial, the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board allocated $1 million for a joint effort with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) to fund projects to benefit Oregon’s symbolic species, such as the state animal (beaver), the state fish (Chinook salmon), state bird (Western Meadowlark) and state insect (Oregon Swallowtail Butterfly). Under this joint effort, ODFW solicited, reviewed, and selected projects for these species consistent with the Oregon Conservation Strategy. ODFW staff consulted with OWEB on the proposed projects and OWEB administered the grants. OWEB’s Oregon 150 partnership funded 16 projects across the state.
How about checking into your state’s conservation efforts to benefit its insect, fish, bird and animal?
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Join me here each day in June for 30 days. 30 Bugs. – a little fun, a little learning and a lotta YIKES!
