Caterpillar of Archduke butterfly (Lexias pardalis dirteana)

The body of the 2nd instar caterpillar is predominantly orangy brown. All ten pairs of short protuberances seen in the 1st instar have lengthened considerably. Each is projected horizontally with numerous branched spines and is almost always pressed to the leaf surface. Each protuberance is mainly pale yellowish in color with some spines colored black in the middle and the tip portion. The 2nd instar lasts for three days with the body length reaching about 11mm before the moult to the 3rd instar. When alarmed, the caterpillar (both in this and later instars) typically reacts by curling up its body, and hiding its head under the "umbrella" of spines so creaed. (Note: all body lengths given in this article do not factor in lengths of the protuberances, and will simply give the length from the head capsule to the last body segment.)