Butterfly metamorphosis and its stages

All animals do not evolve in the same way throughout our lives, and can have a very different change depending on the species to which we belong. For this reason, some animals can grow without having a radical change in our appearance, while other animals can totally change in each of its stages, these being the ones that carry out the so-called metamorphosis. One of the most famous metamorphoses is the one performed by the butterfly, and that is why in this lesson from a PROFESSOR we are going to talk about the butterfly metamorphosis and its stages.

To begin with this lesson on the metamorphosis of the butterfly and its stages we must define the concept of metamorphosis, to understand the importance of this process and why butterflies do it.

The word metamorphosis comes from classical Greek, being a term that was used to refer to transformation. This word was used to speak of the change or mutation from one thing turning into something else entirely. That is why this term is used to talk about the change of butterflies, which is a total evolution of the creature.

Metamorphosis, in the study of animals, is the great change that some animals undergo in their evolution. Animals that undergo this change can see how their body completely mutates, looking like another completely different animal, and they can even change their gender.

Many animals undergo metamorphosis, although it is mainly suffered by the invertebrates, being amphibians the only vertebrate animals that undergo this great change. Even so, the animals that interest us in this lesson are butterflies, which belong to the group of insects, where a large number of species undergo metamorphosis.

The metamorphosis of the insect can vary depending on the species, being mainly two types of metamorphosis. The two types are as follows:

• Simple metamorphosis: The animal changes its molt until it becomes an adult, but does not suffer any period of inactivity.
• Complete metamorphosis: The larva is a totally different creature from the adult, even going through periods in which it remains immobile. This is the kind of metamorphosis that butterflies make.

The butterflies perform a complete metamorphosis, a long period in which the animal undergoes a large number of physical and structural changes, going through long stages in which the animal changes completely. The main stages of the evolution of butterflies can be divided into 4, which are the following:

Egg stage

The first part of the evolution of butterflies takes place inside the egg. This stage begins with the relationship between a male and a female of the species, concluding with the latter laying a series of eggs on a plant. The laying of the eggs in a plant is linked to nutrition, since the idea is that the caterpillar at birth can feed on the plant where it is born.

The hatching of the egg does not have a fixed time, depending on external factors, such as the climate or the temperature of the area where the eggs have been laid. After a while, a larva hatches from the egg, with a body that is only capable of moving like a snake. When the larva is born it already has food, being able to eat both the egg from which it is born, and the plant in which it was born.

Larva stage

The second stage of evolution carried out by the butterfly is known as the larva phase, although on a more daily basis it is more recognized as the caterpillar phaseas that is the way most people call the butterfly larva.

When hatching from the egg, the butterfly larva is very small, bearing no resemblance to the butterfly it will become when it grows. For this reason, at this stage the butterfly only seeks to feed itself in order to evolve, eating all that plant material that it finds on its way, so that it can grow and become the famous caterpillar.

Throughout its stage as a larva it performs a series of shedding of skin, generally between 4 and 5, which serve to grow in size more quickly. After several weeks growing, the caterpillar looks for a quiet place without dangers, and there it weaves its cocoon, to be able to move on to the next phase.

Chrysalis stage

The cocoon or chrysalis is the third phase of the butterfly's evolution, in which the animal enters a period of inactivity, weaving a kind of protective layer around it, which prevents it from moving and feeding, but helps it evolve into an adult butterfly.

This stage can vary in time depending on the species of butterfly that performs it, and can last a few weeks or months. The animal is transforming, appearing the main characteristics of the butterfly, until it breaks the cocoon and goes outside.

Butterfly or adult stage

The last stage of the butterfly is the one in which finally comes out of the chrysalis, with its already characteristic butterfly body. When leaving the animal it is very weak, taking a little time to get used to the outside and to be able to fly. From this moment the function of the butterfly is reproductive, looking for a partner with which mate and thus be able to create another egg, continuing the evolutionary cycle of butterflies and maintaining the species.