Holometabolism

Holometabolism, also called complete metamorphismis, is a term applied to insect groups to describe the specific kind of insect development which includes four life stages - as an embryo, a larva, a pupa and an imago. For example, in the life cycle of a butterfly, the embryo grows within the egg, hatching into the larval stage caterpillar, before entering the pupal stage within its chrysalis and finally emerging as an adult butterfly imago.

Some insect orders which are holometabolic are:

• Lepidoptera - Butterflies and moths

  Hymenoptera - Ants, bees, sawflies and wasps

  Coleoptera - Beetles

  Diptera - Flies

See also

• Hemimetabolism
• Ametabolism

External links

• Metamorphosis - A remarkable change