butterfly is
a mainly day-flying insect of the order Lepidoptera, which includes the
butterflies and moths. Like other holometabolous insects, the butterfly's life
cycle consists of four parts: egg, larva, pupa and adult. Most species are
diurnal. Butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and
conspicuous, fluttering flight. Butterflies comprise the true butterflies
(superfamily Papilionoidea), the skippers and the moth-butterflies.
Butterflies in their adult stage can live from a week to nearly a year depending on the species. Many species have long larval life stages while others can remain dormant in their pupal or egg stages and thereby survive winters
Butterfly
eggs are protected by a hard-ridged outer layer of shell, called the chorion.
This is lined with a thin coating of wax which prevents the egg from drying out
before the larva has had time to fully develop.