Скачать или смотреть Emergence of a Blue Morpho Butterfly from a Pupa or Chrysalis

In nature rarely do we see life cycle as complex as we see in butterflies and moths. One of the true mysteries of nature, which is being unlocked in university laboratories, is that of metamorphosis, the processes which take place in the chrysalis or pupa. The end of that pupal stage in the life cycle is the adult butterfly or moth.

In this case I have chosen the Blue Morpho butterfly (Morpho peleides) using a video of the emergence of the adult at 8 times the normal speed. So a process that took around 11 minutes in real time, takes place here in less than 2 minutes. (On the Channel there is a video of the entire life cycle of the Blue Morpho butterfly.)

Butterflies and moths expand their wings by pumping extra fluid from the pupal stage through veins in the wings. This fluid then polymerizes (makes a hard polymer in the wings) which allows the butterfly or moth to fly.