What is Metamorphosis?

All creatures go through a lifecycle. When they are born they are small and they grow into a bigger/grown up version. Then they have young themselves, either by laying eggs or giving birth to a live baby and the cycle starts again.

But some creatures change much more dramatically than that. Instead of just becoming a bigger version of themselves they change what they look like completely. It’s called metamorphosis. Not all insects go through metamorphosis but a lot do!

This usually involves four stages. The first stage is an egg is laid. Then a tiny larva, such as a caterpillar, grub or maggot, hatches from the egg. The larva eats lots and grows much bigger. Then the larva changes into the pupa stage of the metamorphosis. During this stage the insect changes shape completely. They then become an adult.

Butterflies and moths begin life as caterpillars. Bees, wasps and beetles, including ladybirds, start their lives as grubs. Flies start their lives as maggots.

There is also something called incomplete metamorphosis. This is when some insects, like grasshoppers, go through a change that isn’t quite as dramatic. Grasshoppers don’t change their form completely, but do develop wings as they get older, which they don’t have at all when they are first born.

Ladybird Eggs

Anton Atanasov - Unsplash Image

Ladybird Larva

Ladybird Pupa

Adult Ladybird

Bee Eggs

Bee Larvae

Bee Pupae

Adult Bee

Caterpillar to Butterfly

Public Domain Image

Can you believe how much insects change? Have you ever seen a ladybird or bee like this before?

Butterflies

Butterflies go through metamorphosis and have an amazing transformation.

The cycle starts when a butterfly lays eggs, usually on a leaf. Each egg then hatches into a tiny caterpillar, which is the larva stage. The caterpillar eats and grows bigger and bigger. It sheds its exoskeleton as it gets bigger. This is called moulting.

When the caterpillar is fully grown, it stops eating and forms a pupa around itself. For a caterpillar this is also called a chrysalis. Inside the pupa, the caterpillar changes dramatically!

Once the transformation is complete the butterfly emerges from the chrysalis with soft, delicate wings. The butterfly then has to pump fluid into its wings to make them unfold and be strong and ready to fly. Once this is done they can take off into the sky.

The cycle then repeats itself when the butterfly lays its eggs.