 Butterflies are unique in the huge family of insects as they do not experiance the Nymph stage during its life cycle. They go through complete metamorphosis starting from egg, caterpiller, pupa and adult.
Butterflies are generally short lived. The adult may live for a week to a year depending upon the species.
Eggs: The eggs have hard-ring outer layer of shell called chorion. The eggs are lined with thin coating of wax to prevent them from drying.The eggs are either spherical or oval in shape. The size difers from species to species.The eggs are generally layed under the leaves of specific host plants. Each egg contain a number of funnel shaled holes at one end for fertilization purpose. The egg stage lasts for a few weeks in most butterflies.
Caterpillers: Butterfly larvae is better known as Caterpiller. They feed on plant leaves and have a huge appitite and continue to search for food all the time. A few species are insectivorous. Some larvae have mutual association with ants as they provide honeydew to the ants in return for added protection. The caterpillers often feed on poisonous leaves that helps them to transfer the poison to the adult for protection from predators.
Pupa: The larva undergoes a metamorphosis and moults inside a hard shell like structure incapable of movement. This pupa (chrysalis) hangs itself on to a substrate usually a leaf or bark of a tree and remains there till a fully grown adult butterfly is evolved inside the shell. Ultimately the butterfly breaks the shell and flies out as a fully mature adult (imago).
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