Sources
Help build the largest human-edited directory on the web.
Submit a site - Become an editor
Wikipedia. Licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Are you an expert in this subject? Join the discussion and share your knowledge at Wikipedia.org.
Larva
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A larva (Latin; plural larvae) is a juvenile form of animal with indirect development, undergoing metamorphosis (for example, insects or amphibians).
The larva can look completely different from the adult form, for example, a caterpillar differs from a butterfly. Larvae often have special (larval) organs which do not occur in the adult form. The larvae of some species can become pubescent and not further develop into the adult form (for example, in some newts). This is a type of neoteny.
It is a misunderstanding that the larval form always reflects the group's evolutionary history. It could be the case, but often the larval stage has evolved secondarily, as in insects. In these cases the larval form might differ more from the group's common origin than the adult form.
The early life stages of most fish species are considerably different from juveniles and adults of their species and are called larvae.
Names of various kinds of larvae:
| Animal | Name of larva |
|---|---|
| Hydrozoa | planula |
| Freshwater mussels | glochidium |
| Many crustaceans | nauplius |
| Decapoda | zoea |
| Butterflies and moths | caterpillar |
| Beetles | grub |
| Scarab Beetles | triangulin |
| Flies | maggot |
| Mosquitos | wiggler |
| Bees | schadon |
| Fish (generally) | larva |
| Lamprey | ammocoete |
| Eels | leptocephalus |
| Amphibians | tadpole, polliwog |
| Certain Mollusca, annelids | trochophore |
| Dragonflies and Grasshoppers | nymph |
 |
This developmental biology article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |