Portal:Insects

The Insects Portal

Insects (from Latin insectum) are invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have an exoskeleton, a three-part body (head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and a pair of antennae. Insects are the most diverse group of animals, with more than a million described species; they represent more than half of all animal species. (Full article...)

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The maize weevil (Sitophilus zeamais), known in the United States as the greater rice weevil, is a species of beetle in the family Curculionidae. It can be found in numerous tropical areas around the world, and in the United States, and is a major pest of maize. This species attacks both standing crops and stored cereal products, including wheat, rice, sorghum, oats, barley, rye, buckwheat, peas, and cottonseed. The maize weevil also infests other types of stored, processed cereal products such as pasta, cassava, and various coarse, milled grains. It has even been known to attack fruit while in storage, such as apples. (Full article...)

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... that species in the fossil ant genus Myrmeciites are named for Hercules, Goliath, and a river?
... that Euploea alcathoe, the common crow butterfly, may pass through several generations in a year?
... that the female sand wasp Ammophila sabulosa digs burrows in sandy ground, provisioning each burrow with a food supply of paralysed caterpillars, always laying one egg on the first caterpillar?
... that larvae of the toadfly make their way through the nostrils of the common toad and eat its flesh?
... that the rice stink bug, a major pest of rice kernels, can possibly be ignored when found on standing maize?

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The following are images from various insect-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Fossil gnat in amber, a well-preserved insect fossil (from Evolution of insects)
Image 2Male genitalia of Lepidoptera (from Insect reproductive system)
Image 3
Insect morphology
Legend of body parts
Tagmata: A – Head, B – Thorax, C – Abdomen.
1. antenna
2. ocelli (lower)
3. ocelli (upper)
4. compound eye
5. brain (cerebral ganglia)
6. prothorax
7. dorsal blood vessel
8. tracheal tubes (trunk with spiracle)
9. mesothorax
10. metathorax
11. forewing
12. hindwing
13. mid-gut (stomach)
14. dorsal tube (heart)
15. ovary
16. hind-gut (intestine, rectum & anus)
17. anus
18. oviduct
19. nerve cord (abdominal ganglia)
20. Malpighian tubes
21. tarsal pads
22. claws
23. tarsus
24. tibia
25. femur
26. trochanter
27. fore-gut (crop, gizzard)
28. thoracic ganglion
29. coxa
30. salivary gland
31. subesophageal ganglion
32. mouthparts
(from Insect morphology)
Image 4Showing the paired white paraprocts at the posterior tip. (from Insect morphology)
Image 5Frenulo-retinacular wing coupling in male and female moths (from Insect flight)
Image 6A pie chart of described eukaryote species, showing just over half of these to be insects (from Insect biodiversity)
Image 7Evolution has produced astonishing variety of appendages in insects, such as these antennae. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 8Hoverfly (Philhelius pedissequum) has indirect flight musculature. (from Insect flight)
Image 9The abdominal terminus of male scorpionflies is enlarged into a "genital bulb", as seen in Panorpa communis (from Insect morphology)
Image 10A tau emerald (Hemicordulia tau) dragonfly has flight muscles attached directly to its wings. (from Insect flight)
Image 11Generalized arthropod biramous limb. Trueman proposed that an endite and an exite fused to form a wing. (from Insect flight)
Image 12Cross-section of wing vein (from Insect morphology)
Image 13Queen Alexandra's birdwing (Ornithoptera alexandrae) of Papua New Guinea (from Insect biodiversity)
Image 14Mandibles of Rhyniognatha hirsti, it may be one of the oldest insects, but also possible to be a myriapod. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 15Reconstruction of Strudiella devonica as a possible hexapod (from Evolution of insects)
Image 16Bumblebee defecating. Note the contraction of the anus, which provides internal pressure. (from Insect morphology)
Image 17Variety of male structures in Phlebotominae (Diptera, Psychodidae) (from Insect reproductive system)
Image 18Reconstruction of a Carboniferous insect, the palaeodictyopteran Mazothairos (from Insect flight)
Image 19Diagram of a typical insect leg (from Insect morphology)
Image 20Indian moon moth (Actias selene) with some of the spiracles identified (from Respiratory system of insects)
Image 21Stylized diagram of insect digestive tract showing malpighian tubule, from an insect of the order Orthoptera. (from Insect morphology)
Image 22Scanning electron micrograph of a cricket spiracle valve (from Respiratory system of insects)
Image 23Ctenopisma lineatum showing the two cerci and the central caudal filament. (from Insect morphology)
Image 24Mazothairos, a Carboniferous member of the now extinct order Palaeodictyoptera. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 25Mayfly nymph with paired abdominal gills (from Insect flight)
Image 26The Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) have direct flight musculature. (from Insect flight)
Image 27Direct flight: muscles attached to wings. Large insects only (from Insect flight)
Image 28The female genitalia of Lepidoptera (from Insect reproductive system)

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Credit: Luc Viatour

Panorpa communis, the common scorpionfly (Mecoptera: Panorpidae), is a species of scorpionfly native to Western Europe.

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