The Life Cycle of a ButterflyThe life cycle of a butterfly is perhaps one of the most beautiful and amazing processes in nature. The four stages a butterfly goes through to become magnificent flying insects are just as interesting as the vibrant colors and patterns of the wings of different species of butterflies. The four stages are: egg, caterpillar, pupa and butterfly emergence. Each stage is vital for the development of the adult butterfly. Perhaps the most interesting piece of the complex puzzle that is the butterfly life cycle is the process of metamorphosis that occurs during the third stage. In the same way that a tadpole becomes a frog, a larva (caterpillar) transforms into a beautiful, brightly colored butterfly. To begin with, it is necessary to understand what a butterfly is. A moth is a flying insect from the Lepidoptera family which includes moths and butterflies. This classification (Lepidoptera) constitutes the second largest family within the insect family. Like all holometabolous insects, butterflies undergo a complete cycle of metamorphosis that is broken down into four distinct stages throughout a butterfly's life. Because the butterfly family is so large and the species are so diverse, some butterflies migrate exceptional distances and some have symbiotic relationships with other animals in their habitat. For example, the monarch butterfly, perhaps the most recognizable and well-known of all butterfly species, with its bright orange and black wings that resemble stained glass, migrates to escape the cold of the United States. They manage to migrate south and west in October each year, eventually creating...... middle of article....... 2012. "Biology and external morphology of the immature stages of the butterfly, Diaethria candrena candrena.” Journal Of Insect Science (online) 12, 9. MEDLINE with full text, EBSCOhost (accessed November 12, 2013). “Distinguishing Butterfly Caterpillars from Moth Caterpillars.” » Caterpillars in the Field and Garden: A Field Guide to North American Moth Caterpillars 2-3. Gupta, Ramesh C. 2007. Veterinary Toxicology: Basic and Clinical Principles. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 2007. (page 797)OTAKI, Joji M. 2009. "Analysis of color patterns of parafocal elements in butterfly wings." Entomological Science 12, no. 1:74-83. Vane-Wright, Richard Irwin, Phillip Ronald Ackery and EB Ford. 1984. The biology of butterflies / edited by RI Vane-Wright and PR Ackery. np: London; Orlando: Published for the Royal Entomological Society by Academic Press, 1984.