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| Zoom Butterflies BUTTERFLY LIFE CYCLE |
| The Egg | Larva (Caterpillar) | Pupa | Adult |
The pupa is the stage in a butterfly's (or moth's) life when it is encased in a chrysalis and undergoing metamorphosis. It does not eat during this stage.
The pupa stage lasts from a few days to many months (some butterflies overwinter in the pupa stage, and the adult emerges in the spring).
BUTTERFLIES
The pupa of a
butterfly is called a chrysalis (derived from the Greek word for gold). The
chrysalis of many butterflies (like the Nymphalidae and Satyridae families) are
suspended from a silk pad and abdominal hooks. Others (like like swallowtails
and sulphurs) also have a silk girdle supporting their mid-section. About a day
before the adult butterfly emerges, the chrysalis of many species (including the
monarch)
becomes transparent.
MOTHS
Some moths spin a silk cocoon
which protects the pupa. Some moth larva tunnel into the ground up to several
inches where it will pupate.
A cremaster is a support hook (or a cluster of small hooks) at the abdominal (hind) end of a pupa.
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