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A butterfly's life cycle is a process called metamorphosis. The four life stages of a butterfly are egg, larva, pupa and adult in that order.
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Butterflies developing from egg to adult is completed in about 30 days. Monarchs usually lay a single egg on a plant, often on the bottom of a leaf near the top of the plant.
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A caterpillar is the larval stage of butterflies and moths. The caterpillar hatches from a tiny egg and will eventually pupate and turn into an adult butterfly or moth. This larval stage usually lasts from two weeks to about a month.
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The pupa or chrysalis stage in a butterfly's (or moth's) life when it is encased in a chrysalis and undergoing metamorphosis. It does not eat during this stage. The pupa stage lasts from a few days to many months.
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Adult butterflies have completed metamorphism.
