Bombyx mori with the opportunity to witness the life cycle of silkworms. The practice of raising silkworms by children as pets has, in non-silk farming South Africa, led to the development of extremely hardy landraces of silkworms, because they are invariably subjected to hardships not encountered by commercially farmed members of the species. However, these worms, not being selectively bred as such, are possibly inferior in silk production and may exhibit other undesirable traits. The full genome of the silkworm was published in 2008 by the International Silkworm Genome Consortium. Draft sequences were published in 2004. The genome of the silkworm is
Crustacean larva post-larva is characterised by the use of abdominal appendages (pleopods) for propulsion. The post-larva is usually similar to the adult form, and so many names have been erected for the stage in different groups. William Elford Leach erected the genus "Megalopa" in 1813 for a post-larval crab; a shrimp post-larva is called a "parva"; hermit crab post-larva are called "glaucothoe". In the Branchiopoda, the most basal group of crustaceans, there is no metamorphosis; instead, the animal grows through a series of moults, with each moult adding various numbers of segments to the body, but without any dramatic changes in form.