UNDERSTANDING OF METAMORPHOSIS:
• Metamorphosis is a developmental process involving
biological changes in an animal's physical appearance and
/ or structure after birth or hatching. Physical changes that
occur due to cell growth and differentiation of cells that
are radically different.
METAMORPHOSIS IN DIFFERENTIATED INTO TWO, NAMELY:
1. Incomplete metamorphosis (Hemimetabola)
The metamorphosis is incomplete metamorphosis through the stages of eggs that hatch into
nymphs, then grow and develop into imago (adult).
Nymphs are young animals that are similar to adult
Nymphs are young animals that are similar to adult
animals but are smaller by comparison of different body.
Nymphs will experience a molting (change of
Nymphs will experience a molting (change of
skin), each time after molting creatures that look more similar to adult animals.
Examples of incomplete metamorphosis: crickets,grasshoppers.
2. Complete metamorphosis (Homometabola Complete metamorphosis is the metamorphosis of the
development of the individual living through the stage of egg-larva-pupa-imago (adult).
Eggs that hatch into
Eggs that hatch into
larvae and the larvae will pupate and turn into imago (adult).
Examples of complete metamorphosis: butterfly.
(‘Following are the three stages in the life cycle of grasshoppers.’)
Egg: the female grasshoppers lay the fertilized eggs in the form of egg pods, usually more than ten, either in the sand or among leaf litters. Each egg pod consists of about 10-300 eggs that are rice shaped. Then, the eggs hatch into nymphs. The eggs can remain dormant in autumn and winter seasons, for almost ten months, for the four seasons country.
Nymph: Immediately after hatching, the young nymphs (first instar nymphs) start feeding on soft and succulent plant foliages. Nymphs are miniature versions of adult grasshoppers, except that they are light in color and do not possess wings. Nymphs undergo 5-6 molts and change their form and structure, before becoming adults. The nymphal stage may last for a period of 5-10 days, based on the species and the weather condition, especially temperature and humidity. As the nymphs molt, their size increases and wing pads progressively develop on the thorax portion of the body.
Adult: After 25-30 days, the wings are developed completely and the nymphs mature into adults. Thus, by the time, an egg matures into an adult, the grasshopper is about eleven months old. The adult grasshoppers gain sexual maturity within 15 days and survive for a span of about 30 days.
The life span of grasshoppers is about 12 months. Studies have found out that the survival rate of nymphs after hatching is about 50 percent, as chances are high that they may be eaten by predators like birds, rodents and lizards. This way, grasshoppers play a major role in the effective functioning of an ecosystem, by providing food for many predators in the food chain. A swarm of grasshoppers, also known as locusts, might cause severe damages to the crops, affecting the crop yield.
By: Green-Boyers.blogspot.com
