Our Captured Bear

A few years ago, my husband and I picked up the Take-Along Guide Caterpillars, Bugs & Butterflies. (As an aside, this is a wonderful book for children and adults who want to learn about common insects.) One of the included projects, titled “Capture a ‘Bear’ for the Winter,” directs young naturalists in capturing a wooly bear caterpillar and keeping it over the winter. We’ve all been intrigued with the idea that we might be able to watch a caterpillar hibernate, spin a cocoon, and then emerge as a moth.

We had been waiting until October to start the project, as starting any earlier would result in us trying to keep alive a caterpillar that was nowhere near to hibernating. (In other words, certain death for the caterpillar, which isn’t the intended lesson in all of this.) Last week, the first week of October, we encountered a wooly bear in the wild and finally felt that we could attempt the project with some hope of success. Charlotte carefully carried him home for us, and we’ve set up what we hope will be a successful winter home.

The theory is that he will eat grass for a few days, go to sleep for the winter, and then wake up in the spring to eat and spin a cocoon. We’ll see ..