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In nature, some animals when they reach certain stages of their life cycle go through a process called metamorphosis by which they change their physiognomy, physiology and behavior. This process is carried out by many animals of the groups of insects and amphibians.
If you want to discover more about this transformation process of some animals, with this Green Ecologist article you will learn what is metamorphosis, their types and characteristics, as well as examples of some species of animals that experience it.
What is metamorphosis - summary
Metamorphosis is a hormonally regulated process consisting of a series of morphological and structural changes that an organism undergoes after its birth, together with physiological, biochemical and behavioral alterations. There are different types of metamorphosis depending on whether it is complete or incomplete.
Complete metamorphosis
The complete metamorphosis u holometabolism it is typical of insects (especially winged ones). The phases of complete metamorphosis there are four: egg, larva, pupa and adult or imago. Changes that occur between the larval and adult stages require such an amount of energy that they cannot happen all at once. Within the complete metamorphosis, there are types such as hypermetamorphosis, which takes place in certain types of beetles and flies and is characterized by different larval stages.
Incomplete metamorphosis
Incomplete metamorphosis o hemimetabolism is composed of three stages or phases: egg, nymph and adult, being the egg state the only one that presents anatomical and physiological differences. On the other hand, the nymph forms are very similar in the different cases of incomplete metamorphosis. About 10% of insects show hemimetabolism.
Insect metamorphosis
The metamorphosis of insects It encompasses a series of changes that take place throughout their life cycles at different stages. The development is not the same in all insects, but they differ according to the pattern of structural changes they go through in 3 groups: ametabolos, hemimetabolos and holometabolos.
- Amethabolic insects, which are usually more primitive (such as collembola and silverfish), undergo a slight or "not true" metamorphosis, whereby, from their hatching from an egg, the young forms grow and undergo periodic molts, gradually increasing in size until reaching the typical dimensions of the adult form and, with it, sexual maturity, but always maintaining a similar appearance.
- Hemimetabolic insects (such as grasshoppers, dragonflies, cockroaches or termites), somewhat more evolutionarily advanced than the previous ones, undergo a gradual or incomplete metamorphosis with the 3 vital phases characteristic of it (egg, nymph and adult). The nymph or immature insect is the phase that undergoes growth and resembles the adult in appearance, behaviors, and eating habits, but differs from it in size, body proportions, and color pattern. In these cases, development is gradual and takes place through a series of periodic exoskeleton molts. In the case of winged hemimetabolic insects, it is the appearance of functional wings that marks the transition from nymph to adult.
- Holometabolic insects, on the other hand, they undergo a complete metamorphosis, in which each vital stage presents a totally different form from the one that precedes it and the one after it. In this way, the larvae of holometabolic insects differ from adult forms in the absence of wings, as well as in morphology, the habitats they occupy and their food sources. The larvae undergo growth based on numerous and periodic molts, which culminate in a last one that marks the passage to the pupal stage. Although this phase is characterized by a state of apparent inactivity, numerous changes take place in it in which the insect loses larval tissues and organs and develops those of the adult form (including wings), which represents the last stage of the life cycle of the insect. insect. Complete metamorphosis is the most common among insects, especially winged ones, such as butterflies, beetles, moths, ants, flies, bees, or wasps.
It is thought that the metamorphosis in insects occurred with the gradual separation experienced by adults and larvae, as they acquired different life forms and reached a point of life when their characters became genetically independent. In cases where these differences were extreme, an intermediate pupal stage developed to serve as a bridge between the larval stage and that of the imago, the adult insect.
Amphibian metamorphosis
Amphibians go through a process of metamorphosis in their life cycle. In their larval stage, prior to metamorphosis, amphibians live in water and breathe through gills. As they develop, they undergo the metamorphosis process through which they reach their adult form and go on to live in terrestrial environments, returning to the water only during the spawning season. Thus, most amphibians change from a aquatic larval phase that breathes through gills to a terrestrial adult form that uses lungs in its respiration (or, in other cases, it has cutaneous respiration, that is, it carries out gas exchange through the skin).
So that you know more about the metamorphosis of amphibians and their life cycles, we recommend you to know The life cycle of a frog with this other article.
Examples of animals that have metamorphosis
Once we have explained what metamorphosis is, we present some examples, such as the metamorphosis of the toad, the metamorphosis of the frog or the metamorphosis of the butterfly, among others. These are some examples of animal species with metamorphosis:
- Golden Frog (Incilius periglenes)
- Red-eyed frogAgalychnis callidryas)
- Red fire antInvicta solenopsis)
- European bee (Apis mellifera)
- Cardboard wasp (Polistes dominula)
- European rhinoceros beetle (Oryctes nasicornis)
- Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus)
- Rainbow grasshopper (Dactylotum bicolor)
If you want to read more articles similar to What is metamorphosis, we recommend that you enter our category of Animal Curiosities.
