The effects of rearing in darkness at different times after emergence suggest a critical period for the development of the lamina. Dark-rearing during the first 6 hr after emergence (B) prevented the lamina from increasing to the size seen in controls (A). Any other period of dark-rearing (C–E) resulted in a significant volume difference compared with the LL control group (A) (nA = 17, nB = 19, nC = 11, nD = 15, nE = 16, nF = 25).