Metamorphosis

Now for a little detour just still staying with the natures amazing mechanisms

After looking at the traps seen in the spider web and the carnivorous plants, where mechanisms are designed to attack the prey when they are not expecting it. I began thinking of mechanisms in nature where something puts itself into a state of disadvantage by restricting their movement and thought of the cocoon that caterpillars makes when they transform into a butterfly

A caterpillar spends most of its life crawling around on the ground and leaves, but when it strong and ready it sets about the process to become an adult. They find a sheltered, safe spot in which to Pupate, or transform into an adult. This happens inside a shall known as a Chrysalis, but the specifics differ between species

This the Monarch caterpillar. After wandering for a while, the caterpillar makes a simple silk pad on the underside of a branch or twig. It uses a hook-covered appendage called a Cremaster to attach itself to this pad. It twists around, embedding it cremaster firmly in the silk.Then, it sheds its skin, revealing the chrysalis. The chrysalis hangs upside down from the cremaster until the butterfly is ready to emerge, or eclose

Other caterpillars adopt different processes when they pupate. Some make a silk hammock from a tree branch and pupate right-side up, others make a sling. The chrysalis starts out soft and skin-like, but gradually hardens to form a protective shell. Alternatively moth caterpillars spin a cocoon to protect their chrysalis, which starts soft but gradually hardens. The moth caterpillar may also disguise the cocoon with leaves or other debris

The transformation within the chrysalis is truly amazing, the caterpillar is affectively recycled. Most of the body is broken down into imaginal cells, which can then become any type of cell. Theses cells are then rearranged into a new shape, parts like the caterpillars legs are left more of less unchanged during this process. This process is known as Holometabolism and depending on the specie it takes around two weeks, however often it remains in the chrysalis during the colder winter mouths