Inside the Chrysalis: teacher key

Butterflies, grade 7 edition, written for 7th grade. Read about what happens inside a chrysalis, how monarchs rest through winter, and how their numbers have changed.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. Adult insects do not grow. Caterpillar A stops growing at a bigger size than caterpillar B. Which one becomes the bigger adult butterfly?
   • The one from caterpillar A (answer)
   • The one from caterpillar B
   • They are the same size
2. A monarch spends winter in Mexico. Which group is it in?
   • The eastern group (answer)
   • The western group
   • Neither group
3. As of November 2026, by how much have western monarchs fallen since the 1980s?
   • About 10 percent
   • More than 95 percent (answer)
   • About 50 percent
4. What does diapause mean in 'Monarchs in diapause can live for many months'?
   • A kind of flower
   • A long rest in growth or breeding (answer)
   • A fast flight
5. About how long can monarchs in diapause live?
   • About two weeks
   • Up to about nine months (answer)
   • About five weeks

Words

• metamorphosis: big change
• imaginal: adult-building
• diapause: long rest
• generations: life-cycle rounds