The Life Cycle of a Butterfly — Passage and Quiz
The Life Cycle of a Butterfly
Butterflies go through an amazing change called metamorphosis. This process has four main stages. It all starts with a tiny egg. A female butterfly lays her eggs on a leaf. She chooses a plant that will be good food for her babies when they hatch.
After a few days, a small caterpillar hatches from the egg. This caterpillar is very hungry! It spends most of its time eating leaves and growing bigger. As it grows, it sheds its skin several times. This is called molting.
When the caterpillar is fully grown, it enters the next stage. It finds a safe place and forms a chrysalis around itself. Inside the chrysalis, the caterpillar's body breaks down and reforms. This is an incredible process where the caterpillar changes into a butterfly!
After about two weeks, a beautiful adult butterfly emerges from the chrysalis. At first, its wings are soft and wet. The butterfly pumps fluid into its wings to make them strong. Once its wings are dry, the butterfly can fly.
Adult butterflies feed on nectar from flowers using their long, tube-like tongues called proboscises. They also play an important role in nature by helping to pollinate plants as they fly from flower to flower. When it's time to lay eggs, female butterflies will find the right plants, and the cycle begins again.
Quiz
1. The process of change that butterflies go through is called ____________.
2. A butterfly starts its life as a tiny ____________.
3. The very hungry stage of a butterfly's life is called a ____________.
4. When a caterpillar sheds its skin, this process is called ____________.
5. The stage where a caterpillar changes into a butterfly happens inside a ____________.
6. Adult butterflies drink ____________ from flowers.
7. The long, tube-like tongue of a butterfly is called a ____________.
8. Butterflies help plants by ____________ them as they fly from flower to flower.
Related Content
