Mistakes to avoid when gluing butterfly pupae
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What NOT to do when gluing butterfly chrysalises or pupae |
Teachers, gardeners, enthusiasts, butterfly breeders, and butterfly farmers often 'hot' glue pupae after removing them from their rearing containers. There are several safe ways to glue or reattach pupae. One can even glue a pupa farther down the pupa than most of us first realize!
BUT there are also several UNSAFE ways to glue pupae.
BUT there are also several UNSAFE ways to glue pupae.
 A glue strand lays across the pupa after it is glued |
 When emerged, it can become tangled in the strand of glue |
 This entanglement can lead to death of the butterfly |
After gluing pupae, remove all strands of cooled glue that may lay across the backs of the pupae. Depending upon where the glue is laying across the pupa, it may entangle its wings or legs in the glue. If wings are entangled, the wings will never become full flat beautiful wings. If legs become entangled, it can suspend and die.
 When glued upside down the butterfly cannot emerge and will die |
 A Monarch chrysalis is glued upside down |
 Properly glued Monarch butterfly chrysalis |
When glued upside down, the chrysalis is sealed and the butterfly cannot emerge. They always emerge from the same place ... the back of the thorax. If one is glued upside down, remove it gently after the glue has cooled. Reglue it correctly.