Life Cycle of the Butterfly

There are four stages in a butterfly's life. (see animated graphic) When the butterflies lay their eggs they usually lay their eggs on the plants which they like to eat. The butterflies can lay about 100 eggs at a time. It takes 10 days before the eggs hatches.

Their first meal is usually the egg. Then they start eating the leaves on the plant. They eat and eat until they can't fit into their skin any longer.

Life cycle of a butterfly and moth.
Click on the graphic for a larger illustration.

They change their skin very often called moulting. The skin splits and they grow into a larger skin. When the caterpillar is fully-grown, it forms a pupa. It attaches it's tail to the branch and it starts spinning silk till it's all covered. It takes about 10-14 days until the caterpillar is ready developed. Then the pupa cracks. Some butterflies live only for a couple of weeks, but some live for a couple of years.

Colour and Camouflage

Certain colors come from ridges on the scales. The ridges break and the light comes into the various colours of the spectrum.

Some colours on a butterfly prove that they're poisonous. The poisonous butterflies usually fly more slowly. If the butterfly is red, yellow and black it's poisonous, but some butterflies are yellow, red and black, but that is just to make other animals and insects scared.

Some butterflies have letters of the alphabet (see article on butterfly wing imagery) or pictures of eyes on their wings. The letters are for no reason, but the eyes on their wings are very useful when they get attacked, because the animals usually go for the eyes, and not for the wings. (see photograph) Then they'll go for the wings and the butterfly is saved.

Enemies and Defence

Butterflies are not always defenceless. Some butterflies are poisonous so when animals or insects bite them they die. Some just squirt a stinky spray. Some caterpillers have spikes to scare off enemies or look tough. But when they are adult butterflies they can be hunted and eaten. Some butterflies' wings look like birds' eyes or other animals so they can trick preditors.

Caterpillars are freuqently
attacked by ants and wasps.