SHEDDING YOUR SUIT OF ARMOR (ECDYSIS) Many invertebrate species such as insects, spiders and crustaceans must undergo a shedding of their exoskeleton (hard body armor). Technically known as ecdysis, this shedding allows these animals’ bodies to expand as they grow. The animal’s back cracks open and a soft vulnerable animal wriggles out of the old suit of armor. In many species, the new cuticle is pale, even ghostly white as in the case of the cockroaches in this video. The new body may take hour