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Metamorphosis & Insect Diet

Incomplete Metamorphosis Insects pass through 3 separate stages of growth; as egg, nymph, and adult. Locusts, grasshoppers, cockroaches, termites and dragonflies Egg develops into adult by nymphs which are, essentially, adults lacking wings Moulting takes place during instars (each nymphal stage)

Complete Metamorphosis Insects pass through four separate stages of growth, as egg (embryo), larva, pupa, and adult (imago). Also called holometabolism Lepidoptera (butterflies & moths)Siphonaptera (fleas) Dpitera (flies)Strepsiptera (parasites) Hymenoptera (ants, wasps, bees)Thysanoptera (thrips) * Thrips metamorphosis is intermediate between simple and complex

Amphibian Metamorphosis

Lepidopterous Insect ► Lepidopterous insects live a four stage life style: Egg, Nymph and Adult ► These insects have four large scale covered wings that bear distinctive markings and larva that are caterpillars

Egg Butterfly eggs are made of a hard-ridged outer layer of shell called the chorion. This is lined with a thin coating of wax which prevents the egg from drying out before the larva has had time to fully develop. Each egg contains a number of tiny funnel-shaped openings at one end, called micropyles; the purpose of these holes is to allow sperm to enter and fertilize the egg. Butterfly and moth eggs vary greatly in size between species, but they are all either spherical or ovate.

Larvae ► Larvae has ONE basic function:…. ► Also… ► Distribution of species as larvae are motile ► In parasitic species, they help move the parasite to the host ► Larvae are responsible for feeding and growth.

Caterpillar Segmented body: Head, thorax (3 pairs of joined legs), and an abdomen (5 pairs of stumpy prolegs + 1 clasper) Simple eyes (ocelli) which only detect changes in light Powerful jaws: Mandibles which have sharp cutting surfaces Maxillae: Help guild food into mouth Contain chemical detectors which help the caterpillar identify food

Pupa & Chrysalis ► Pupa-(pl. pupae) the third, inactive stage of insects with complete metamorphosis, the transition stage between the larval and adult stages. Usually non-mobile. ► Chrysalis-a butterfly pupa, not enclosed in a cocoon, a pupa without a protective cover.

Butterflies are today distributed throughout the world except in the very cold and arid regions. There are an estimated 17,500 species of butterflies (Papilionoidea) out of about 180,000 species of Lepidoptera Butterfly Magnified scale from a butterfly's wing

Nutritional Requirements ► Egg  Yolk: Contains proteins, phospholipids and fats needed for rapid development. ► Caterpillar  Leaves: Protein for growth & carbohydrate for energy ► Pupa  None: Uses stored energy for metamorphosis ► Butterfly / Moth  Nectar: High source of energy for flying

► Depending on what an insect eats, it is described as being either; ► Phytophagous: Feeding on plants ► Zoophagous: Feeding on other organisms ► Saprophagous: Feeding from decaying organic matter Insect Diet

Phytophagous ► Anthophagous: Flowers ► Clethorophagous: Seeds ► Cone-feeding: Seeds & cones of conifers ► Frugivorous: Fruit or fruiting bodies of plants ► Heteroconophagous: Stems & Needles ► Nectarivorus: Nectar ► Phyllopphagous: Leaves of plants ► Pollenophagous: Pollen ► Root-feeding: Roots ► Sap-feeding: Sap ► Xylophagous: woody tissues (wood)

Cool Facts ► ► “Wings or wing pads are not visible on the outside of the larva, but when larvae are dissected, tiny developing wing disks can be found on the second and third thoracic segments, in place of the spiracles that are apparent on abdominal segments. Wing disks develop in association with a trachea that runs along the base of the wing, and are surrounded by a thin peripodial membrane, which is linked to the outer epidermis of the larva by a tiny duct. “ (Wikipedia) ► ► :Butterflies feed primarily on nectar from flowers. Some also derive nourishment from pollen, tree sap, rotting fruit, dung, and dissolved minerals in wet sand or dirt. Butterflies play an important ecological role as pollinators.” ► ► “…a butterfly is seen as the personification of a person's soul, whether they be living, dying, or already dead.”

Bibliography ► ► BOOKS: ► ► McKay, Mathew (2005), The Hutchinson Encyclopedia, Hodder Arnold ► ► Pappas, Theodore (2003), Britannica Precise Encyclopedia, Encyclopedia Britannica ► The Virginia Gardener Handbook ► Relf, Diane (2002), The Virginia Gardener Handbook, No publisher stated The Virginia Gardener HandbookThe Virginia Gardener Handbook ► ► Swihart, S. L (1967). Hearing in butterflies. J. Insect Physiol 13, 469 ► ► WEBSITES: WEBSITES: ► ► ► ► ►