Meet Jo Nagai: 10-year-old Japanese student who discovered butterflies can remember their time as caterpillars after he noticed that the caterpillars he had raised to recognise him after turning into butterflies

A 10-year-old student from Japan has captured worldwide attention after his fascination with butterflies led to a remarkable scientific study that is challenging long-held assumptions about insect memory. Jo Nagai, an elementary school student from Kobe, spent years carefully observing the Asian swallowtail butterflies he raised at home. His curiosity was sparked when he noticed that the butterflies appeared to recognise him even after undergoing metamorphosis from caterpillars. Determined to understand whether memories formed during the caterpillar stage could survive this dramatic transformation, Jo designed a series of experiments that have since been presented before professional scientists, generating discussions about animal cognition, metamorphosis and inherited behaviour. While some of his findings still require independent verification, his work has made him one of the youngest researchers to gain international recognition.Who is Jo Nagai, the 10-year-old Japanese student behind the butterfly discovery?Jo Nagai is a 10-year-old student at Ibuki East Elementary School in Kobe, Japan. He is also a scholar of the Son Masayoshi Philanthropic Foundation, which supports exceptio...