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Sunday, 15 May 2016

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The life cycle of a butterfly

We all love butterflies for their beautiful, brightly-coloured wings. But did you know that these beautiful flyers begin life as something completely different? As they grow, they undergo an amazing transformation - a process known as 'metamorphosis'.


Stage 1 - The egg

It all starts when a female butterfly lays her eggs, usually on leaves or stems of plants. In these tiny eggs, caterpillars grow.


Stage 2 - The caterpillar

Once ready, the caterpillar leaves its egg home and enters the big outside world! And these little critters have a big appetite - they actually eat their way out of the egg and immediately start chomping on the leaves of the host plant.


Stage 3 - The pupa

When fully grown, the caterpillar forms itself into a 'pupa' (or chrysalis) - a kind of vessel in which the caterpillar changes into a butterfly. And inside, the tissue, limbs and organs of the caterpillar transform. The result? A wonderful winged butterfly!


Stage 4 - The butterfly

When the butterfly is ready to come out, the case around the pupa splits open. But it's not time for take off just yet, as the wings are at first wet, soft and wrinkled against its body. The butterfly waits for its wings to dry, and pumps a liquid called hemolymph into them so that they become big and strong. Once fit for flight, this brilliant bug then takes to the air in search of flowers to feed on.

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