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Insect life cycles
A group of terms related to insect life cycles.
Terms in this group
- Adenotrophic viviparity
a type of development where eggs hatch within the female insect and the larvae are nourished until ready to pupate. At this stage the larvae are laid and pupate immediately. - Aestivation
a period of summer dormancy. - Bivoltine
a species having two broods per year. - Brood parasitism
a form of parasitism whereby the parasite uses another organism to raise the parasite's offspring rather than the host's own offspring. - Caterpillar
the second stage in the life cycle of butterflies and moths. - Chorion
the outer shell of an insect's egg. - Chrysalis
the third stage in the life cycle of a butterfly or moth. - Cocoon
the protective covering around the pupae or chrysalis of some insects. - Complete metamorphosis
a type of metamorphosis in which an insect goes through four distinct stages: egg, larva, pupa, imago. - Cremaster
a series of hooks used to attach the pupa of a butterfly or moth to a twig or other structure. - Diapause
the arrested development of an organism. Diapause is often the result of environmental conditions. - Drone
the name given to male bees. - Ecdysis
moulting of the arthropod cuticle. - Eclosion
the emergence of an insect from a pupa or egg. - Egg
the first stage in the life cycle of many insects and other animals. - Endopterygota
the development of the wings inside the body of an insect. - Exopterygota
the development of the wings outside the body in insects. - Exuvia
the cast-off outer skin of an arthropod after a moult. - Flying ant day
the colloquial name given to the day when winged ants emerge from their colonies and go on their nuptial flight. - Food plant
the type of plant eaten by a particular species. - Frass
the droppings of insect larvae. - Gall
a growth on a plant in response to the action of an insect. - Geometer
the larvae of Geometrid moths. - Gyne
the female reproductive of bees, ants and wasps. Usually the name used to describe the female before she has been on the nuptial flight. - Hermaphrodite
a hermaphrodite is an organism possessing both male and female sexual organs. - Imago
the adult insect. - Incomplete metamorphosis
a type of metamorphosis in which an insect hatches from an egg and then goes through several similar nymphal stages before reaching adulthood. - Insects
the largest Class of arthropods and the most diverse group of animals in the world. - Instar
an immature arthropod between moults. - Juvenile hormone
a hormone that inhibits development of a juvenile insect to an adult. - Larva
the juvenile form of an insect. - Leaf miner
the larvae of an insect living between the upper and lower surfaces of a leaf. - Life cycle
the stages of the life of an organism. - Life stage
an individual stage in the life of insects, each usually having a very different appearance to the other stages. - Maggots
the common name given to the larvae of some species of true fly (Diptera). - Metamorphosis
the process of development of an organism that involves distinct stages with an abrupt change between them. - Multivoltine
a species having many broods per year. - Nuptial flight
the mating flight of some insects such as social bees and ants. - Nuptial gift
items provided by a male invertebrate to a female prior to mating. - Ootheca
a type of egg mass produced by several different groups of insect including Praying mantids and Cockroaches. - Order
one of the seven taxonomic ranks used to classify living organisms. Order comes after Class and before Family. - Oviparity
reproducing by means of laying eggs. - Parasitoid
an organism that lives on or in another organism and eventually kills it. - Parthenogenesis
the reproduction of an individual whereby offspring are produced without fertilisation by a male. - Pharate
the adult insect prior to emergence from a pupa. - Pupa
the third stage in the life cycle of insects undergoing complete metamorphosis. - Puparium
an outer covering that protects the pupae of some flies (the Cyclorrhapha). - Semivoltine
a species taking more than one year to complete its life-cycle. - Teneral
the state of an insect immediately after moulting. At this time the insect's exoskeleton has not hardened and it may be pale in colour. - Univoltine
a species having one brood per year. - Viviparity
giving birth to live young (not eggs). - Wing bud
flattened structures possessed by nymphs from which the wings will develop in the adult insect.
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