pupa Definition
pupa (pyo̵̅o̅′pə)
noun pl. -·pae-pē or -·pas
an insect in the nonfeeding stage of development between the last larval and adult forms, characterized by many anatomical changes and, often, by enclosure in a cell or cocoon
Etymology: ModL: so named by Carolus Linnaeus < L, girl, doll, prob. < IE *pup- < base *pu-, to swell up, inflate
pupa Related Forms
pu′·pal adjective
pupa Synonyms
pupa Usage Examples
Converse of object
- become: These eggs hatch into larvae which then become pupae.
- form: The lower image shows a recently formed pupa found attached to a leaf.
- collect: Nor did they collect the pupae and they respected certain times for burning the savannah to minimize destruction of the pupae.
- parasitise: Tiny parasitic wasps hatch from these cards and fly off to parasitise whitefly pupae.
- reveal: After about two days it makes the final molt to reveal the pretty pupa.
- kill: Also, the pesticide will not kill the pupa until they emerge as wasps.
Adjective modifier
- white: They complete their growth within the grain, transform to white pupae, and the adults cut their way out.
- brown: The caterpillar will turn into a small brown pupa hidden in the leaf which will then emerge as a small brown moth.
Preposition: on
card: Two delivery choices are available: Single pack delivery - one delivery of 600 pupae on cards.
Modifies a noun
- stage: The adult, larval and pupa stages are under the ground and out of view.
- cannot: The very distinctive pupa cannot be mistaken for any other species.
Preposition: in
soil: They overwinter as larvae in roots or as pupae in the soil, tho a few adults may survive the winter.
Preposition: of
- moth: The invertebrate in the is picture on the right is likely to be a pupa of a moth?
- butterfly: Palermo 27 What name is given to the pupa of a butterfly?
- fly: The young are fed on invertebrates, particularly caterpillars, larvae and pupae of flies and beetles.
Noun used with modifier
- sedge: Fishing slightly up and across with a cdc sedge pupa I managed to hook the first two grayling and suddenly everything was alright.
- whitefly: A small hole maybe found after the adult wasp has emerged from the whitefly pupa.
- moth: Moths found in Quaker Oats packs Boxes of Quaker Oats are pulled from the shelves because of the presence of moth pupae and larvae.
- butterfly: Each individual butterfly pupa that they can ship to one of these customers can be worth between 2 and 5 UK pounds.

