Caterpillar of Archduke butterfly (Lexias pardalis dirteana)

After about 4 days, the 1st instar caterpillar emerges and proceeds to eat the eggshell as its first meal. The caterpillar is yellowish orange in body colour and has a head capsule in darker shade of yellowish-orange. Its body sports ten pairs of short dorso-lateral protuberances complete with long black setae. Frass pellets are usually seen attached to the tip of these setae in this instar. The caterpillar grows from an initial length of about 2.5mm to 7mm in three days. The subsequent moult takes it to the 2nd instar.