Metamorphosis, in contrast to the typically modest changes in animals, is dramatic.
Animals such as fish, insects, and amphibians go through metamorphosis. The cells’ secretion of hormones manages it.
Mammals typically age gradually, keeping their shape and form as they transition from adolescence to adulthood and old life.
However, an animal passes through those phases during metamorphosis and transforms into a different form or shape.
The metamorphosis of a tadpole into a frog and a caterpillar into a butterfly are the most typical (and well-known) instances.
However, other animals undoubtedly go through metamorphosis, which has equally fascinating tales.
We focus on them in our post:
1. Grasshoppers
Grasshopper is first on our list of animals that go through metamorphosis. Its species number between 11,000 and 12,000, according to estimates.
Large grasshoppers have a jumping range of 20 times their body length. Grasshoppers can reach a height of two to five inches, with females often being larger than males.
Grasshoppers transition through many nymphal phases. The baby grasshopper hatches as an adult, and its exterior skeleton changes as it grows.
Grasshoppers undergo an imperfect metamorphosis process as well. The animals grow from eggs to adults in roughly two months.
Throughout the summer and autumn, adult females deposit eggs. The eggs form a pod when they adhere to one another.
The number of eggs in a pod can range from a few to hundreds, depending on the species. The females bury the pods to protect them.
The following stage is the nymphal stage. Nymphs rely on tender and succulent plant foliage to live after hatching. Nymphs resemble adult grasshoppers very much.
These animals undergoing metamorphosis will molt five to six times during this period, which ushers in the adult stage.
The organism reaches maturity after this period, lasting up to six weeks. The average adult lives for around a year.
The adult female begins producing eggs right away, and she will keep doing so throughout her life, doing so every three to four days.
2. Termites
Termites are also one of the animals that go through metamorphosis, referred to as “incomplete metamorphosis.”
This sets them apart from eusocial insects like ants, wasps, and bees in terms of their life cycle.
The juvenile undergoes molts and growths at each stage until it becomes an adult in a complete metamorphosis.
On the other hand, with incomplete metamorphosis, the transformations happen more gradually.
Termites resemble the adult workers who keep watch over them, and these workers go through three stages of metamorphosis:
The nymph stage lasts at least a month (though it depends on the climate), the egg cycle is over in approximately four weeks, and the adult stages can last anywhere from one to many years.
The entire process is subject to change depending on the ecology and can differ from species to species.
The nymphs can move around, especially as they develop. They aren’t quite ready to work yet but free to roam the nest.
The nymph can undergo up to seven molts, although she never does it alone. Adult employees give them things to gnaw on so they can shed their skin.
Some species, such as the dry-wood or damp-wood termite, can molt on their own.
The animals that go through metamorphosis population are consistent with their pheromones and food supplies, and the colony’s castes start to form during the worker instar.
For instance, a certain number of army termites are constantly present. The pheromone imbalance would balance the population if there was a conflict and all soldier termites perished.
3. Chalazodes Bubble Nest Frog
It is extremely rare, only found in a small portion of India, and its habitat is rapidly disappearing.
Like many other frog species, it was once believed that these ones laid eggs on pond floors, eventually developing into tadpoles.
The frogs’ alternative reproductive method, discovered in 2014, involves them crawling into a live bamboo stem that has been damaged (perhaps by insects or rodents), where they lay their eggs.
The organisms hatch into froglets rather than going through the tadpole stage. Because it lacks a tadpole stage, the species doesn’t need water to lay its eggs.
4. Crown of Thorns Starfish
Crown of Thorns starfish has several venomous spines sticking out from its body. Although they are meant to protect themselves from predators, these spines are extremely painful for people to step on.
The juvenile’s appearance upon birth is an amorphous form that resembles little more than a translucent, floating blob.
It eventually develops arms, followed by spikes, and then it clings to rocks to devour coral.
5. Moths and Butterflies
Moths and butterflies undergo a complete metamorphosis, making them possibly the animals that come to mind when you hear the phrase “metamorphosis.”
When they first hatch, moths and butterflies seem significantly different from how they do as adults.
When they hatch, animals that go through metamorphosis develop into their larval forms, caterpillars.
Compared to their mature counterparts, caterpillars are elongated organisms that more closely resemble worms.
Before it’s time to pupate, caterpillars go through numerous stages of growth, during which they consume several times their own weight in food.
Butterflies and moths, respectively, produce chrysalides and cocoons during their pupal stage.
They undergo an amazing transformation inside their pupal capsules, completely destroying and recreating their physical form.
6. Frogs and Toads
Most frogs and toads undergo a three-stage, partial metamorphosis. The majority of these amphibians need water to lay their eggs.
Although this is the rule, certain toad species give birth to live young, while others breed on dry land to produce miniature copies of adults.
Most species’ eggs hatch into little, fish-like tadpoles that live exclusively in the water while they develop physically and mentally toward adulthood.
Tadpoles have long tails, no discernible legs, and swim through the water, unlike their adult counterparts.
These animals that go through metamorphosis bodies expand along with their tails as they mature, and their legs start to form.
Some animals are particularly aquatic and like to reside close to huge bodies of water. Most toads and other animals leave the water to live solely terrestrial lives.
7. Dragonflies
Like amphibious frogs, dragonflies go through an incomplete metamorphosis. Like frogs, dragonflies start out as only aquatic animals that differ greatly from their adult appearance.
Nymphal dragonflies are predators that are frequently observed preying on other water creatures.
The nymphs emerge from the water after molting, showing their much larger adult bodies close to the water as they finish their transformation.
8. Beetles
Beetles are next on our list of animals that go through metamorphosis. The animal kingdom’s largest order of insects is called Coleoptera.
There are around 250,000 species of beetles known to science. With so many different species, it is understandable that beetles have a wide range of sizes, shapes, colors, and habitats.
Beetles undergo a complete metamorphosis, developing first into larval grubs and then adult forms. Grubs can have a favorable or detrimental impact on people for some species.
Some grubs are frequent “feeders” for exotic pets, while others are pests of lawns and landscaping.
While some animals undergoing metamorphosis are considered pests, others are ecologically advantageous because they feed on pest species.
9. Mantid
A sizable group of predatory insects called mantis go through incomplete metamorphosis. These distinctive insects have lengthy bodies, big eyes, and front legs designed to catch prey.
Because of how these remarkable animals that go through metamorphosis hold their front legs, they are collectively known as praying mantids.
Instead of laying single eggs, mantids produce egg sacs known as ootheca. A few dozen to several hundred young mantis that resemble smaller copies of the adults emerge from the sac.
Mantids are highly predatory species that feed on other young as well as other animals that are small enough to eat.
Due to their predatory tendencies, these animals that go through metamorphosis are coveted gardening partners.
However, mantids will trap and eat anything tiny enough, including birds, amphibians, and small mammals, much to the astonishment of many gardeners.
10. Lobster
You might not immediately picture lobsters when you think of animals that go through metamorphosis.
Near the ocean’s surface, they begin life as larval planktonic organisms. Larvae don’t resemble their adult counterparts in either appearance or behavior.
They feed on smaller planktonic species as they swim and bob.
Lobster larvae have a curled body, unlike the generally flat adults. The larvae undergo multiple molts, each of which causes them to grow bigger.
Young lobsters gradually leave the ocean’s dazzling surface as they age and move into its deeper, darker regions, where they will stay their entire lives.
Like many other animals undergoing metamorphosis, lobsters go through long molting periods.
They can expand unrestrictedly because they molt, exchanging their “old” shells for larger, fresher ones.
11. Cockroach
Cockroaches only undergo a partial metamorphosis. Cockroaches arise from ootheca, similar to mantids. Many species’ females trail their ootheca behind them.
Although many cockroach species are uniformly brown, black, or yellowish-brown in color, the young occasionally exhibit distinct patterns and body forms.
Young are born without wings; some species’ entire wings never develop, while others only have full wings in one sex.
Despite the widespread negative perception of these animals undergoing metamorphosis, most species are not bothersome. Many species even contribute to the health of their ecosystems.
Some may find it unexpected that some species exhibit tremendous parental care for their young, frequently carrying nymphs through many instars.
12. Spider
Spiders are last on our list of animals that go through metamorphosis. It undergoes an imperfect metamorphosis. These are the three full growth stages.
Adult egg spiderling: With arachnids, there is no pupal stage; instead, the spiderlings resemble scaled-down copies of the adult.
Since the exoskeleton does not develop in spiders, the exoskeleton must be removed or molted repeatedly.
In silken sacs, most spiders deposit their eggs. Some species may weave a web around their sacs or affix them to twigs or leaves.
Until the eggs hatch, others will carry the sac. Even young spiderlings have been known to cannibalize their own kind. The egg is produced and kept during the embryonic period.
In temperate habitats, some spiders overwinter in the sac, and mothers protect the egg sacs from predators.
Female wolf spiders carry the sac in an unusual maneuver and bite it open when the moment is right to release their spiderlings. The young may stay on the mother’s back for over a week.
The immature stage is the spiderling stage. They immediately disperse after hatching. Others may balloon while others stroll.
Spiders use a technique called “ballooning” to cover large distances.
They ascend and perch there. They spin silk by lifting their bellies, and the wind picks up the threads and carries them away. According to studies, they occasionally travel distances of many miles.
Spiders molt repeatedly as they grow. Their mother carefully protects them because they are so delicate after shedding.
Spiders have a one- to two-year lifespan on average. Adult spiders reproduce by mating and having young. Lifespans are typically longer in females. Usually, males pass away after mating.
The lifespan of a tarantula is extraordinarily long. Even after reaching full age, females of these spiders continue to molt for up to two decades.
If the female tarantula molts after mating, she must mate again since the exoskeleton prevents the female from giving birth and serves as sperm storage.
Conclusion
In our post, we’ve looked at animals that go through metamorphosis, but there are many more fascinating ones!
This post includes beetles, salamanders, mayflies, scorpions, and dragonflies.
Complete metamorphosis is also experienced by sea species such as crustaceans (lobster, crabs, and prawns), cnidarians (jellyfish, sea anemones), and echinoderms (starfish, sea urchins, and sea cucumber).
According to certain surveys, 80% of all species go through some transformation.
As a result, it is actually more uncommon for a creature to mature without experiencing some physical change.
