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Stages of Development for Milkweed Bugs

The milkweed bug is a six-legged insect with a tubular beak that is used for sucking nutrients from the seeds of the milkweed plant. Like other insects, the body of the milkweed bug is broken into three segments; the head, abdomen and thorax. During their lifetime, milkweed bugs go through three stages of development, also known as hermimetabolous development, or incomplete metamorphosis. Incomplete metamorphosis includes an egg stage, nymph stage and adult stage.

Eggs and Hatchlings
- The first stage of development in the life cycle of the milkweed bug is the egg stage. The egg is yellow in color and takes approximately four days to one week to hatch. Just before the egg hatches, it will begin to turn a deep orange color. The hatchling is also known as a nymph. Upon hatching, nymphs are bright orange in color and approximately the size of a pinhead.
Nymphs
- Immature milkweed bugs are called nymphs. Despite the fact that they are smaller in size, nymphs look very similar to the adult milkweed bug. However, nymphs are not fully developed. They do not have wings or reproductive organs. Their abdomens are bright red, and they do not have the distinctive markings that distinguish males from females as they do in adulthood. The primary mission of the nymph is to eat and grow into adulthood, which takes approximately one month.
Molting
- To reach adulthood, the nymph milkweed bug goes through several phases of molting. Molting is the shedding of skin, which helps the milkweed bug become larger and more developed. The nymph will experience five stages of molting. The time between each molt is called an instar. After molting, the milkweed nymph will turn a pale yellow color. Its legs and antenna will become bright red. Within a few hours the legs and antenna will return to black and the body will revert back to its orange color. During the early instars, wing pads will begin to appear on the nymph's back, first appearing as black spots. Soon other marking develop that begin to distinguish the males from the females.
Adults
- After the final molt, the milkweed bug is considered an adult. Adults have wings, reproductive organs and distinctive markings that help to determine their sex. Female milkweed bugs have a black stripe and two black dots on their abdomens, while males have two black stripes. Milkweed bugs are now ready to mate. Females mate between five and 12 days after the last molt, while males wait only two to three days. Adults mate end to end and can stay connected for as long as 30 minutes. The life span of an adult milkweed bug is approximately one month.

Insects & Science