Caterpillar growth-log. Day 3.

Hey guys!

So I've decided to do a shot-by-shot documentary of the growth of my latest batch of larvae. I mean it's just about three days since we last took a look at them emerging from their tiny little egg-cases and they're already more than two times their original length. It's just amazing, sometimes how fast these little babies grow although, growth in individual larvae may be affected by different factors (e.x humidity, temperature etc.). So let's take a look at them:


Larva 1

The first caterpillar, Larva 1, has grown tremendously measuring approximately 4 millimieters now and appears to be eating most voraciously.



Larva 2

 Larva 2, on the other hand has grown though not as much, measuring only 3 milimeters or so and appears to be much thinner. I am still unclear as to how these two larvae could have such different growth rates when they pretty much hatched within a minute of each other and are provided with the same levels of humidity and temperatures. Could it be perhaps the kinds of leaves that I have provided them with? (larva 1 is fed with young shoots while larva 2 feeds on mature leaves.) Perhaps if I switched their diets larva 2 will be showing a similar growth rate to larva 1?