UNDERSTORY

As a part of the Market Street Prototyping Festival, SITELAB created The Understory, a new raised ground to catch caterpillars along Market Street.

The Understory provides a moment for city + ecology to co-mingle, and for pedestrians to see a new view of Market Street.

The Western Tiger Swallowtail butterfly thinks of Market Street as a natural canyon. The tall buildings and wide street, along with a warm climate and dappled sunlight, simulate the environment of a canyon habitat. The London Plane trees lining the street provide the Swallowtail’s larval food source. 

Today the Swallowtail butterfly call Market Street home. However, many butterflies do not complete their life cycle. In its caterpillar stage, the caterpillar naturally falls out of the trees and crawls back up the tree to form its cocoon. On Market Street, most caterpillars get trampled, unknowingly by pedestrians, and do not survive to crawl back to the tree. What if we could “catch” the caterpillars’ fall and preserve their habitat? And, reveal to pedestrians the natural habitat just above their heads?

Community Engagement

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