Children and Butterflies – Introducing a Child to Nature’s Miracles

A child’s garden party, birthday party, or any-day event can be taken to new levels of delight by the addition of a butterfly release. Children are fascinated by these creatures and enjoy releasing them into nature.

Starting with butterfly and caterpillar games, songs, and decorations, the stage is set. Follow the butterfly focused start of the party with a meal of sandwiches cut with a butterfly cookie cutter, chips on a butterfly platter, chip dip in butterfly cups, juice in butterfly printed glasses, a butterfly shaped or butterfly decorated cake, and ice cream in butterfly bowls.

End the party with a release of butterflies, soaring into the air amidst the peals of laughter and delight of children.

Children are gentle with butterflies at releases and are awestruck at the opportunity to open a special release envelope to release the butterfly. A little finger is slipped underneath the butterfly’s feet and lifted out of the envelope. Be sure to keep your camera ready, the butterflies will often linger on little sugary fingers. From whispers as they look the butterfly eye to eye, watching its proboscis drink up the last drops of juice on a fingertip, to loud shouts of laughter as the butterfly finally decides it is time to go, this party will be one party they will always remember.

When these children grow up and grow older, each time a butterfly flies past they will remember the party and wonder if that particular butterfly is a descendant of the one they released that fantastic day.

Shady Oak Butterfly Farm raises butterflies year round. Butterfly orders are shipped for delivery in 24 hours or less. The butterflies are cooled just as nature’s nights cool butterflies. In a semi-dormant state, they simply ‘sleep’ until they are removed from the box and allowed to warm up in daytime temperatures, ready for their release into nature for the first time.

Shady Oak’s butterflies are not wild-collected, depleting nature, but are raised in a laboratory according to USDA requirements. After they have emerged from their chrysalises as adult butterflies, they are released into screened gardens to feed and dry their wings. At that point, they are ready for their release into nature to continue their life and add to the butterfly population of the world.