pronymphs

Noun

pronymph (plural pronymphs)

1. An arthropod hatchling still inside its embryonic cuticle, often specialized for breaking the eggshell or leaving the oviposition site; a prolarva.
   • Rudimentary mandibular and maxillary stylets of a pronymph are external, short, tubular appendages containing tips of the corresponding nymphal stylets, whose more basal parts develop inside of the head.2018, Roman Rakitov, Pronymphs, hatching, and proboscis assembly in leafhoppers and froghoppers (Hemiptera, Cicadellidae and Aphrophoridae), Elsevier
2. A prepupa with externally visible pupal traits.
   • The transition from eonymph to pronymph was marked by a certain number of morphological modifications and by the progressive formation of the pupal eye.1998, Martine Hamel et al., The effects of 20-hydroxyecdysone on breaking diapause of Diprion pini L. (Hym., Diprionidae), Blackwell Science, pages 337-346