IELTS Task 1 process diagram: The life cycle of a ladybird
Process diagramAcademic
The question
The diagram below shows the life cycle of the ladybird. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words.
The life cycle of the ladybird
- 1EggsLaid in clusters on leaves; hatch after 3 to 5 days
- 2LarvaEats aphids and grows for about 3 weeks
- 3PupaAttaches to a leaf and changes form for 7 to 10 days
- 4AdultEmerges, eats aphids and can live for up to a year
- 5MatingAdults mate and the female lays eggs on a leaf
- ↻ The cycle then begins again at step 1.
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Write your answer
Then get an estimated band, with checks on your overview, the key features and every figure.
0 words · 150 more to reach 150
Write your own answer first, then compare. Reading a model before you write tends to make you copy it.
The plan
Key features for the overview
- Four stages: egg, larva, pupa, adult.
- A cycle: adults mate and lay eggs, so it starts again. The adult stage is by far the longest.
How the details are grouped
- Egg to larva
- Pupa to adult, and the cycle repeating
Model answer
171 wordsThe diagram shows the life cycle of the ladybird, a small beetle, from the laying of eggs to the adult stage.
Overall, the ladybird passes through four distinct stages: egg, larva, pupa and adult. The process is cyclical, since adult ladybirds mate and lay eggs, allowing the cycle to begin again. Of the four stages, the adult stage is by far the longest.
The cycle starts when a female lays a cluster of eggs on a leaf. After three to five days, these hatch into larvae, which feed on small insects called aphids. The larvae continue eating and growing for about three weeks.
At this point, each larva attaches itself to a leaf and becomes a pupa. Over the next seven to ten days, it undergoes a complete change of form. Finally, a fully formed adult emerges. Adult ladybirds also eat aphids and can live for as long as a year, during which time they mate. The female then lays her eggs on a leaf, and the whole cycle is repeated.
The highlighted paragraph is the overview. Scored by the MyBandPrep checker on 7 October 2026. An estimate, not an examiner’s mark. How scoring works
Why it works
- Task Achievement
- The overview names all four stages, says that the process is a cycle and picks out the longest stage. The time spent at each stage, the only figures in the diagram, is reported accurately.
- Coherence and Cohesion
- The essay follows the cycle in order and closes it by returning to the eggs, which mirrors the diagram. “At this point” and “over the next seven to ten days” mark the stages clearly.
- Lexical Resource
- Natural-process verbs replace the diagram's labels: hatch into, feed on, undergoes a complete change of form, emerges. The plural “larvae” is used correctly.
- Grammatical Range and Accuracy
- Unlike a manufacturing process, a natural cycle is mostly active (“the larvae continue eating”). Relative clauses and time clauses join the stages smoothly.
Phrases worth reusing
- passes through four distinct stages
- the process is cyclical
- hatch into larvae
- undergoes a complete change of form
- the whole cycle is repeated