Butterfly: Four stages from caterpillar to flyer

The butterfly is the garden's greatest shape-shifter: as a baby it is a crawling caterpillar, and as an adult it becomes a beautiful flying insect. Such a complete change is very special in nature. Let's meet the butterfly.

Its body

The butterfly's key feature is its two pairs of large wings, covered in tiny scales — those lovely colours and patterns are built from these scales. So if you touch a butterfly's wing, a little powder sticks to your finger; those are scales that have come off. Its body is divided into head, thorax and abdomen, with a pair of antennae and large eyes on the head.

Its life

A butterfly's life passes through four stages: egg, larva (caterpillar), pupa and adult. The caterpillar's main job is to eat and grow; when it has grown enough it becomes a pupa, quietly "rebuilding" its body inside, and finally emerges as a flying adult. This four-stage change is called "complete metamorphosis" — one of the most magical ways an insect develops.

Where it lives and what it eats

An adult butterfly sips nectar through a long mouthpart like a drinking straw. As it flits from flower to flower it carries pollen to other blossoms, helping plants reproduce — so butterflies are important pollinators. They love sunny places full of flowers.

A note for grown-ups

You could look for caterpillars and butterflies with a child, then talk about how they are actually the same animal. Linking the larva and the adult sparks a deep interest in change and growth. Watch butterflies with your eyes, not your hands — let them fly free.