Fifth of 5 false-colour scanning electron microgr- aphs of caterpillars hatching from the eggs of the the large white butterfly, Pieris brassicae. The

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Fifth of 5 false-colour scanning electron microgr- aphs of caterpillars hatching from the eggs of the the large white butterfly, Pieris brassicae. The micrograph shows a newly hatched caterpillar on the undersurface of a nasturtium leaf. The colour of the caterpillar has been made darker in this picture to express the darkening of the chitin that occurs in nature after the caterpillar's emergence. The young caterpillars feed on the cuticle of the leaf until after the first moult, when their diet expands to the whole leaf. Their voracious appetite can defoliate a whole crop. Magnification: x30 at size. Reference: MICROCOSMOS, figure , page 63.

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Size: 4488px × 4171px
Photo credit: © DR JEREMY BURGESS/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: animal, brassicae, butterfly, colouring, insect, insecta, invertebrate, invertebrates, jbu, large, nature, pest, pieris, white, wildlife, zoology