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The transformation takes place in four stages: the egg, the larva, the pupa and the adult stage. The beginning of the cycle begins with eggs, usually laid by butterflies on plant leaves. “This period lasts from a few days to a month”, says entomologist (insect specialist) Cleide Costa, from the Museum of Zoology at the University of São Paulo. A mechanism in the insect’s body makes the embryo remain dormant in the egg until the climate and growth conditions of the plant where it is become favorable.
It then turns into a larva (caterpillar). In this phase, lasting from months to more than a year, the animal eats more, usually leaves, to grow and store energy. During this stage, the larva produces silk or similar threads, which attach to the surface where it is. Although not yet the cocoon, these threads serve as shelter from predators.
Upon reaching the pupa stage, after several changes of skin, the animal uses these threads to build the true cocoon. It is in this third phase that the big changes take place. The larva is in a state of total rest for a period that varies from one week to one month and the tissues of its body are modified. When the butterfly is ready, it breaks through the cocoon and releases its wings. The main activity in the adult stage, which lasts from a week to a few months, is reproduction.