Portal:Insects

The Insects Portal

Insects (from Latin insectum) are hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous 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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Fruit fly feeding off a banana

Drosophila melanogaster is a species of fly (an insect of the order Diptera) in the family Drosophilidae. The species is often referred to as the fruit fly or lesser fruit fly, or less commonly the "vinegar fly", "pomace fly", or "banana fly". In the wild, D. melanogaster are attracted to rotting fruit and fermenting beverages, and are often found in orchards, kitchens and pubs.

Starting with Charles W. Woodworth's 1901 proposal of the use of this species as a model organism, D. melanogaster continues to be widely used for biological research in genetics, physiology, microbial pathogenesis, and life history evolution. D. melanogaster was the first animal to be launched into space in 1947. As of 2017, six Nobel Prizes have been awarded to drosophilists for their work using the insect. (Full article...)

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... that the flower chafer species Eupoecila australasiae gains its common name of 'fiddler beetle' from its violin-shaped markings?
... that the larvae of the Silky Hairstreak secrete substances that attract ants?
... that unlike other siricid wood wasps, Xeris spectrum does not have symbiotic fungi to aid its larvae as they burrow in the wood of fir and other conifer trees?
... that the extinct snakefly genus Proraphidia is known from fossils found in Spain, England, and Kazakhstan?
... that Kricogonia lyside can grow from egg to adult in as little as 13 days?

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

Image 1Queen Alexandra's birdwing (Ornithoptera alexandrae) of Papua New Guinea (from Insect biodiversity)
Image 2A pie chart of described eukaryote species, showing just over half of these to be insects (from Insect biodiversity)
Image 3Male genitalia of Lepidoptera (from Insect reproductive system)
Image 4Fossil gnat in amber, a well-preserved insect fossil. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 5The female genitalia of Lepidoptera (from Insect reproductive system)
Image 6Scanning electron micrograph of a cricket spiracle valve (from Respiratory system of insects)
Image 7Stylized diagram of insect digestive tract showing malpighian tubule, from an insect of the order Orthoptera. (from Insect morphology)
Image 8Closeup of a fire ant, showing fine sensory hairs on antennae (from Insect morphology)
Image 9Larva of Syrphid fly, member of Cyclorrhapha, without epicranium, almost without sclerotisation apart from its jaws. (from Insect morphology)
Image 10
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 11Direct flight: muscles attached to wings. Large insects only (from Insect flight)
Image 12The development of insect mouthparts from the primitive chewing mouthparts of a grasshopper in the center (A), to the lapping type (B) of a bee, the siphoning type (C) of a butterfly and the sucking type (D) of a female mosquito.
Legend: a – antennae
c – compound eye
lb – labium
lr – labrum
md – mandibles
mx – maxillae (from Insect morphology)
Image 13The abdominal terminus of male scorpionflies is enlarged into a "genital bulb", as seen in Panorpa communis (from Insect morphology)
Image 14Venation of insect wings, based on the Comstock-Needham system (from Insect morphology)
Image 15Cross-section of wing vein (from Insect morphology)
Image 16Head of Orthoptera, Acrididae. a:antenna; b:ocelli; c:vertex; d:compound eye; e:occiput; f:gena; g:pleurostoma; h:mandible; i:labial palp; j:maxillary palps; k:maxilla; l:labrum; m:clypeus; n:frons (from Insect morphology)
Image 17Bumblebee defecating. Note the contraction of the anus, which provides internal pressure. (from Insect morphology)
Image 18Indian moon moth (Actias selene) with some of the spiracles identified (from Respiratory system of insects)
Image 19Reconstruction of a Carboniferous insect, the palaeodictyopteran Mazothairos (from Insect flight)
Image 20Hoverfly (Philhelius pedissequum) has indirect flight musculature. (from Insect flight)
Image 21Mazothairos, a Carboniferous member of the now extinct order Palaeodictyoptera. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 22Generalized arthropod biramous limb. Trueman proposed that an endite and an exite fused to form a wing. (from Insect flight)
Image 23Mayfly nymph with paired abdominal gills (from Insect flight)
Image 24Reconstruction Strudiella devonica as a possible hexapod (from Evolution of insects)
Image 25Mandibles of Rhyniognatha hirsti, it may be an oldest insect, but also possible to be a myriapod. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 26Larva of beetle, family Cerambycidae, showing sclerotised epicranium; rest of body hardly sclerotised (from Insect morphology)
Image 27Diagram of a typical insect leg (from Insect morphology)
Image 28Variety of male structures in Phlebotominae (Diptera, Psychodidae) (from Insect reproductive system)
Image 29Evolution has produced astonishing variety of appendages in insects, such as these antennae. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 30A tau emerald (Hemicordulia tau) dragonfly has flight muscles attached directly to its wings. (from Insect flight)
Image 31Frenulo-retinacular wing coupling in male and female moths (from Insect flight)
Image 32The Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) have direct flight musculature, as do mayflies. (from Insect flight)

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Reduviidae (Hemiptera) is a large, cosmopolitan family of predatory insects, including the assassin bugs (genera include Melanolestes, Platymeris, Pselliopus, Rasahus, Reduvius, Rhiginia, Sinea, Triatoma, and Zelus), wheel bugs (Arilus cristatus) and thread-legged bugs (the subfamily Emesinae, including the genus Emesaya). There are about 7,000 species altogether, making it one of the largest families in the Hemiptera.

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WikiProjects

Main WikiProject:

WikiProject Insects

Related projects:

WikiProject Arthropods
WikiProject Spiders
WikiProject Animals
WikiProject Tree of Life
WikiProject Biology

Daughter projects:

WikiProject Lepidoptera

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Article requests : There are thousands of family-level through species-level articles that have yet to be started.
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