Caterpillars refer to the larval stage in the process of butterfly development. There is no job of a caterpillar except eating and growing up. They have an uncontrollable appetite. Caterpillar stores this food for using it as an adult. It is the second stage of butterfly development when they exist as a caterpillar. 

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Female butterflies lay their eggs on plants that they consider suitable food for their caterpillars. Butterfly caterpillars don’t move much, and that’s the reason they spend their whole life on one plant. 

What Butterfly Caterpillars Look Like?

Butterfly caterpillars have many pairs of true legs in their structure, along with some pairs of prolegs. They usually have a tough exoskeleton that is not stretchable. They grow as rapidly as they eat, and there is no definite measurement available for their size. 

Their size increases 100 times during the process. For instance, if we consider the growth of the monarch butterfly caterpillar, its primary size is so tiny that it grows to about 2 inches with few weeks. The color of the butterfly caterpillar mainly depends upon the species of parent butterfly. They often come in patterned colorization. 

The amazing fact about butterfly caterpillars is that they split their skin in the growing process. Caterpillar butterflies shed skin for about four to five during the developmental process. Their skin is not stretchable; that’s why it comes new after some time. You can see them eating plants through their tiny mouth all the time as they aim to eat and grow larger to the level of pupating. Butterfly caterpillars have mouthparts for chewing, which are known as mandibles. These chewy mouthparts allow them to eat plant parts and leaves all the time. You will not find them near water as they don’t need to drink it.