The development of a new insect begins from an egg laid by a female insect, which is where the larva develops. 

After some time, the larva hatches out from its egg and starts eating plant parts. By eating, the larva gathers energy for its next transformation. As the larva grows, it sheds its skin multiple times. When the larva sheds its skin for the final time, a pupa is revealed. 

The pupa is a kind of shell within which an adult insect develops. Finally, when the insect has transformed into an adult, it hatches out from its pupa and spreads its wings, ready for its first flight.

Most butterfly species spend the winter inside the pupa. However, the first butterflies one can see during the spring, such as the common brimstone, have overwintered as adults. 

In grasshoppers and blackflies, the development from an egg to an adult occurs gradually. The larvae of these species already resemble the adult insects, and they do not have to develop through a pupa stage. This kind of a process is known as an incomplete metamorphosis.