Metamorfosis facts for kids

Metamorfosis is a big word that means a complete change or transformation. In nature, it's a special process where an animal changes its body shape and form during its life cycle. Think of it like a magical makeover!

What is Metamorphosis?

Metamorphosis is a biological process where an animal develops after birth or hatching. It involves a sudden and noticeable change in the animal's body structure. This change happens through cell growth and differentiation. Many insects and amphibians go through metamorphosis.

Complete Metamorphosis

Some animals, like butterflies, go through a "complete" metamorphosis. This means they have four main stages in their life. Each stage looks very different from the others.

Butterfly Life Cycle

• Egg: A butterfly's life starts as a tiny egg. The egg is usually laid on a leaf or stem.
• Larva: The egg hatches into a larva. For butterflies, this larva is a caterpillar. Caterpillars spend their time eating and growing very quickly. They shed their skin several times as they get bigger.
• Pupa: After growing enough, the caterpillar changes into a pupa. For butterflies, this is often called a chrysalis. Inside the chrysalis, amazing changes happen. The caterpillar's body breaks down and rebuilds into a butterfly.
• Adult: Finally, the adult butterfly emerges from the chrysalis. The adult butterfly has wings and can fly. Its main job is to lay eggs and start the cycle again.

Incomplete Metamorphosis

Other animals, like grasshoppers, go through "incomplete" metamorphosis. They have only three stages. The young ones look similar to the adults but are smaller and don't have wings yet.

Grasshopper Life Cycle

• Egg: Grasshoppers also start as eggs.
• Nymph: The egg hatches into a nymph. A nymph looks like a small adult grasshopper but without fully developed wings. Nymphs grow by shedding their skin several times.
• Adult: After several molts, the nymph becomes an adult grasshopper. The adult has full-sized wings and can reproduce.

Amphibian Metamorphosis

Frogs are a great example of amphibians that go through metamorphosis. Their life cycle involves changing from living in water to living on land.

Frog Life Cycle

• Egg: Frogs lay their eggs in water, often in clumps called frogspawn.
• Tadpole: The eggs hatch into tadpoles. Tadpoles live in water, have gills to breathe, and a tail to swim. They eat plants.
• Froglet: As tadpoles grow, they start to develop legs. Their tail gets shorter, and they begin to develop lungs to breathe air. They are now called froglets.
• Adult Frog: The froglet loses its tail completely and becomes an adult frog. Adult frogs can live on land and in water. They eat insects.

Other Uses of Metamorfosis

The word "Metamorfosis" is also used for other things, like names of music albums or companies.

• Metamorfosis (record label): This is a company that helps musicians record and release their music.
• Metamorfosis (Ednita Nazario album): This is a music album released in 1992 by singer Ednita Nazario.
• Metamorfosis (Vega album): This is another music album, released in 2009 by the artist Vega.
• Metamorfosis (Cenobita album): This album was released in 2002 by the band Cenobita.
• Metamorfosis (Jeans album): This album was released in 2017 by the band Jeans.

See also

• Metamorphosis (disambiguation)
• Metamorphoses (disambiguation)
• Metamorfosi (disambiguation)