Painted Lady Butterflies Develop, Emerge in Time Lapse

Here we see the later life stages of several Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui)Butterflies. Once the caterpillars are mature, they suspend themselves upsidedown, by attaching a body part called the cremaster to a silken pad on the twig, much like the way Velcro works. In about 1 day, the caterpillar sheds its final skin to complete the pupation process. Inside the pupa, the caterpillar has essentially liquified itself into a soup of cells. During the next 1214 days, metamorphosis takes place the cells