2 Hatchlings and Diamond Painting

Two of the three eggs hatched today. I knew one was imminent as I could see its black head through the egg casing this morning. This one's eaten through the egg and is starting in on the milkweed leaf.

This one's already eaten through its 'birthleaf' (my unofficial terminology).

After just a few hours as a larva, it's about 3/32" long (2.3mm). It will be about 2" long (5cm) in a couple of weeks just before pupating (forming the chrysalis). That's about 200x its original size.

I also finished my diamond painting. You can see why I liked it.

I ironed it from the back on with a warm iron on synthetic setting to smooth it out. It worked quite well. Now my task will be to find a frame to fit it. It may involve cutting it right up to the edge of the 'diamonds' and mounting it on a plain background to act as a mat.