Photos: Going Native
Butterfly Station, located at Farnsworth Middle School in Guilderland, is free and open to the public, 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Monday through Friday through Aug. 8.
The Enterprise — Michael Koff
Reaching for a butterfly: A Farnsworth Middle School student tour guide, right, reaches toward a monarch butterfly as a family looks around at the native plants and other butterflies. The student-run native garden and butterfly house is located on school grounds at 6072 State Farm Road in Guilderland.
The Enterprise — Michael Koff
Showing off: A monarch butterfly fans its wings as it lights atop an Echinacea blossom at Farnsworth Middle School’s Butterfly Station. In addition to walking among butterflies, visitors can watch how numerous butterfly species grow in the metamorphosis room, make free butterfly projects in the craft room, and enjoy interactive butterfly exhibits in the museum room. Butterfly Station is free and open to the public, 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Monday through Friday through Aug. 8.
The Enterprise — Michael Koff
Slow but steady: Monarch caterpillars crawl on greenery inside their plastic box before they metamorphosize into butterflies; the students of Farnsworth Middle School will release them into the wild at the end of the Butterfly Station season for migration to Mexico. There has been a 10-fold drop in the eastern monarch population over the last decade.