A chrysalis matures in the early days of October. The monarch butterfly in this chrysalis needs to get it moving. The window for migration is closing quickly. The hint of wing patterns suggests the eclose is close. The butterfly did eclose successfully (not a certainty with the many parasites around) and left for Mexico on a summer October day. We had moved the chrysalis inside in small screen house when the milkweed it was attached collapsed in a heavy autumn rain. Taken with a Nikon 60mm AF Micro-Nikkor, the best cheap Nikon macro lens on a budget.
