HOW MANY EGGS DOES A BUTTERFLY LAY AND HOW LONG IS ITS CYCLE?

Eastern Tiger Shallowtail (Papilio glaucus) butterfly cycle showing all instars from egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, adult and death. When a tropical butterfly emerges from the pupa or chrysalis, it lives for 2 to 3 weeks.
Butterfly Cycle
Kentish glory (Endromis versicolor), showing all instars from egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, adult and death. A butterfly lays 100 eggs or more—as small as the period at the end of a sentence—that look like water droplets.
Kentish glory (Endromis versicolor)

When a tropical butterfly emerges from the pupa or chrysalis, it lives for 2 to 3 weeks. It lays 100 eggs or more—as small as the period at the end of a sentence—that look like water droplets. The different kinds of butterflies lay their eggs on specific host plants and in one particular area. After hatching, the larvae feed on the same type of plant.

The larva or caterpillar goes through 5 developmental stages, scientifically known as instars, before turning into a pupa.
Caterpillar
The pupa or chrysalis stage lasts 10 days.
Chrysalis or Pupa

Host plants include wildflowers and banana plants. The pupal stage lasts ten days. The larva or caterpillar goes through 5 developmental stages, scientifically known as instars, before turning into a pupa. After its third instar, the larva lives to eat, increasing almost 2,700 times in size in just 14 days. If a newly-born kitten weighing 100 grams (approximately 3.5 ounces) were to gain weight at the same rate, it would weigh almost 270 kilograms (595 pounds) at the end of two weeks.

Eastern Tiger Shallowtail butterfly at different stages.
Eastern Tiger Shallowtail Butterfly
Butterfly pupa at different stages.
Butterfly Pupa

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