- The direct passage from the egg stage to the pupal stage.
- The growth of the larva up to the capping of the cell.
- A transformation of development that leads from a larval form to an adult, in several zoological groups.
Show the answer
Correct answer: 3.
A transformation of development that leads from a larval form to an adult, in several zoological groups.
Why?
Metamorphosis is a profound transformation of the body and functioning of an animal in the course of its development. It exists in several zoological groups, notably in numerous insects.
In the honey bee, this transformation makes it possible to pass from a very simple larva, without functional wings or legs, to a complete adult called the imago.
What to understand
The bee is a holometabolous insect: this means that it undergoes a complete metamorphosis. Its development passes through several stages: egg, larva, pre-pupa, pupa, then adult.
Metamorphosis proper takes place above all in the capped cell. The larva becomes immobile, spins a cocoon, and then its organism gradually reorganises. The legs, the wings, the antennae and the eyes of the adult form.
Answer 1 is incomplete, because the bee does not pass directly from the egg to the pupa: there is first a larval stage. Answer 2 describes only a part of larval development before capping, but not metamorphosis as a whole.
The development of the brood depends strongly on stable conditions, notably on the temperature maintained by the colony. Significant disturbances, such as prolonged cooling or certain contaminants, can compromise the proper course of development. Generalisation should, however, be avoided: the effects depend on the substances, the doses, the moment of exposure and the state of the colony.
What to remember
Metamorphosis is not merely growth: it is a complete transformation of the organisation of the body.
In the bee, it explains the passage from a larva dependent on the care of the nurse bees to an adult insect capable of taking on the tasks of the colony.
Further reading
► Metamorphosis of the bee: what is at play in the capped brood
► Metamorphosis
► From egg to imago
► Biology and physiology of the bee