An organism that does not undergo significant physical changes or metamorphosis during its life cycle.
From Greek 'a-' (not) + 'metabolē' (change, transformation). The term emerged in zoology in the 19th century to describe insects and other organisms that develop without distinct larval stages.
Most insects we know go through wild transformations—caterpillars become butterflies—but ametabolians break this pattern; silverfish and springtails have been doing their thing basically unchanged for over 300 million years, making them living time capsules of ancient insect designs.
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