NEED TO KNOW<\/p>\n
Prince George<\/a>\u00a0didn’t appear in Kate Middleton<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Prince William<\/a>‘s latest social media post, but the video called back to the young royal’s first birthday photos.\n<\/p>\n On July 18, the Prince and Princess of Wales’ joint social media pages on Instagram and X shared a short, serene video showing butterflies in nature. The post promoted the Big Butterfly Count<\/a>, a U.K.-wide survey from the Butterfly Conservation asking residents to record how many of the insects they see in 15 minutes to help determine the health of the environment.\n<\/p>\n “Today marks the start of the\u00a0#BigButterflyCount<\/a>! \ud83e\udd8b\ud83c\udf3f,” the video caption read. “From now until 10th August, join thousands across the U.K. in spotting and recording butterflies to help protect these vital pollinators. It only takes 15 minutes to do in any green space from your local park, garden or balcony!”<\/p>\n<\/p>\n The video was reminiscent of a butterfly outing that Prince William and Princess Kate, both 43, made 11 years ago ahead of their eldest son’s first birthday. In July 2014, the couple brought Prince George to the Sensational Butterflies exhibition at the Natural History Museum in London, where they took family photos that were released for the youngster’s birthday<\/a> on July 22.<\/p>\n In the snaps, taken by John Stillwell, Prince George sported blue and white overalls as he checked out the fluttering insects with his parents. At one point, George sat on mom Kate’s lap as he seemed interested in a butterfly that landed on dad William’s hand.\n<\/p>\n Another photo showed that George was walking around the exhibit unaided!\n<\/p>\n Stillwell told PEOPLE at the time that Prince George was “fascinated to see them fly but a little scared when they got a bit close to him.”<\/p>\n Prince William, Kate Middleton and Prince George on July 2, 2014.<\/p>\n John Stillwell – WPA Pool\/Getty\u00a0<\/p>\n Stillwell added, “As anybody with a young toddler would be, they were very proud parents. They were very relaxed and were happy to be there, showing him around. They were showing him things, pointing things out. What stands out is how relaxed they are when they are doing something like that. There are no airs and graces.”\n<\/p>\n Sir Michael Dixon, Director of the Natural History Museum, called hosting the family \u201ca real pleasure.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \u201cThey seemed to enjoy their visit, wandering through the tropical plants as brightly colored butterflies took flight around them,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was delightful to see\u00a0Prince George\u2019s first experience of the Natural History Museum, and I look forward to welcoming them again in the future.\u201d\n<\/p>\n Prince George on July 2, 2014.<\/p>\n John Stillwell – WPA Pool \/Getty<\/p>\n Prince William and Princess Kate now have three children \u2014\u00a0Prince George, Princess Charlotte<\/a>, 11, and\u00a0Prince Louis<\/a>, 7 \u2014 and they traditionally release a new portrait of them for each birthday. A new photo of Prince George is expected next week when he turns 12 on July 22.\n<\/p>\n The milestone birthday may also trigger a change in royal protocol<\/a>. Prince George is second in the line of succession to the throne behind his father, and in the past, royal heirs have stopped traveling by plane together at that age. The rule is an effort to secure the future of the monarchy should a tragic accident occur.\n<\/p>\n King Charles<\/a>\u2019 former pilot, Graham Laurie, previously said that Prince William stopped flying with his father after his 12th birthday.\n<\/p>\n \u00a0Laurie said on A Right Royal Podcast<\/a>\u00a0in 2023, “Interestingly, we flew all four: the Prince [Charles], the\u00a0Princess [Diana]<\/a>, Prince William and\u00a0Prince Harry<\/a>, up until Prince William was 12 years old. After that, he had to have a separate aircraft, and we could only fly all four together when they were young with the written permission of Her Majesty,” referring to then-monarch\u00a0Queen Elizabeth<\/a>.”<\/p>\n Prince Louis, Prince William, Prince George, Kate Middleton and Princess Charlotte at Trooping the Colour on June 14, 2025.<\/p>\n Karwai Tang\/WireImage<\/p>\n It’s unclear if Prince William and Princess Kate will follow the travel rule. They have previously ditched tradition<\/a> when it comes to certain elements of raising their kids, determined to give them a normal childhood despite their royal status.<\/p>\n The late Queen Elizabeth reportedly voiced her concerns about Prince William piloting helicopters with his family onboard during her life. According to a 2021 report by\u00a0The Sun on Sunday<\/a>, the Queen was kept awake at night with worry over her grandson’s habit of flying helicopters, despite his training with the Royal Air Force.\n<\/p>\n “She knows William is a capable pilot but does not think it is worth the risk for all five of them to carry on flying together, and can’t imagine what would happen. It would spark a constitutional crisis,” the article said.\n<\/p>\n The next person in the line of succession to the throne after Prince William’s three children is Prince Harry. The Duke of Sussex, 40, stepped back from royal duties in 2020 and relocated to California with his wife, Meghan Markle<\/a>,\u00a0and their two children.\n<\/p>\n Can’t get enough of PEOPLE’s Royals coverage?\u00a0Sign up for our free Royals newsletter<\/a>\u00a0to get the latest updates on Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle and more!<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n This year marks Prince George’s last year at Lambrook School, and it’s believed that he will follow in dad\u00a0Prince William<\/a>‘s footsteps at the Prince of Wales’ alma mater, Eton College, come 2026.\n<\/p>\n After the Prince and Princess of Wales explored a\u00a0variety of options<\/a>\u00a0for their eldest son, a source recently told the\u00a0Mail on Sunday<\/a>\u00a0that “all roads lead to Eton.”\n<\/p>\n Insiders say there’s a “smugness” about the pending announcement from the prestigious boys-only school, according to the report: “It was like: ‘I know something, and the people at Eton know something, but I\u2019m not going to tell you.’ ”\n<\/p>\n