Cockroaches undergo which type of metamorphosis?

• A. short
• B. total
• C. gradual
• D. egg, larvae, pupae, adult

Answer: (C)

Gradual metamorphosis is what cockroaches use. In this type, insects go from egg to nymph to adult, with the immature stages resembling smaller versions of the adults and shedding their skins as they grow. There’s no pupal stage, so they don’t form a chrysalis. That’s why cockroaches are described as undergoing incomplete or gradual metamorphosis. The alternative description that uses egg, larva, pupa, and adult corresponds to complete metamorphosis, where larva and adult look very different and a pupal stage occurs, which isn’t how cockroaches develop. The term labeled as “short” isn’t a recognized metamorphosis type.