noun

• A phase between two periods of molting in the development of an insect larva or other invertebrate animal.

  ‘When the eggs hatch, the caterpillar enters the first instar (stage of development).’

  More example sentences

  • ‘After the second moult, larvae preyed only on the first-instar nymphs of Libyaspis, while the larvae of later instars preyed on nymphs of a wide range of sizes.’
  • ‘The larval stage consists of four phases, or instars, with a complete molt between each instar.’
  • ‘At the end of the third instar, the larva wriggles out of its warble, falls to the ground, and burrows into the soil to pupate.’
  • ‘The life cycle of most metamorphic insects includes several sequential larval instars followed by a molt to a pupa, and then a final molt to the adult.’