4 ms·
Human embryos go through some crazy changes too. Parts grow and are reabsorbed (tails). Many animals also shed hard exoskeletons regularly (lobsters, spiders)
by sandworm101 3y ago
Human embryos go through some crazy changes too. Parts grow and are reabsorbed (tails). Many animals also shed hard exoskeletons regularly (lobsters, spiders). That involves softening up the inner animal. Perhaps that was a part-way step towards full metomorphosis.
- usrusr 3y agoAnother interesting perspective is to look at it not as a more elaborate form of exoskeleton shedding, but as hatching from a very sophisticated egg.
- derefr 3y agoOr as similar to a two-generation-cycle parasite that alternates between a host-A form creating eggs that grow into a host-B form (creating eggs that grow into a host-A form, etc.) The pupa internally "gestates" the adult as a parthenogenetic clone-child; the adult being gestated, absorbs the pupal parent's entire body for nutrients — and, crucially, the pupal parent's body allows this absorption of its entire body, producing no immune response to it, because they have the same DNA. As with a cyclic parasite, you get two different complete lifecycles, that are each born, live, and die from the same genetic program, given a different epigenetic kickstart, in a back-and-forth cycle.
- cvwright 3y agoThis sounds strangely similar to the code for the Morris worm.