THE SCIENCE OF ENTOMOLOGY

Roderick B. Recto LAgr.,

INTRODUCTION

CONTENTS

1. History of Pest Infestation

2. The importance of insects to man and
agriculture
3. Distinguishing characteristics of insects
4. Types of insect antennae, mouthparts, legs
and wings
5. Types of insect metamorphosis
History of Pest Infestations
 The evolution of man has been antedated by
insects such as:
 cockroach – fossils have been found in the Upper
Carboniferous Period 250M years ago

Paleozoic era (350 – 125 M years ago) – marked

by rapid expansion of plant and animal life and the
development of more highly complex forms of life
Crop Pest Infestation Before Christ (1000
BC)

 In the old testament, Amos (the greatest

prophet of israel) wrote about the outbreak of
blight and mildews, and locust (Amos 4:1).

 In Exodus, Moses and Aaron turned the dust

of Egypt into lice, swarms of flies and locust
(Exodus 8:16, 21-24 and 10:4-15)
Crop Pest Infestation before the Greek
Writers
 Homer, the Greek poet (1000 BC) mentioned
in The Odyssey the use of “pest averting”
sulfur where the insecticide is still being used
up to this date
 Cleidemus (400 BC) wrote about the diseases
of fig and olive trees.
 Aristotle (370-286 BC) noted the rust of grains
 Hippocrates (350 BC) describe the practice of
fumigation by burning gums and resins
Crop Pest Infestation during the Roman
Empire
 Pliny reported that rust was the greatest enemy of
cereals and Robigus, the special rust God of the
Romans, was honored with the annual festival
known as Robigalia. During the festival, prayers
were done to spare crops and withhold gods
wrath so that rust would not harm the grains
 The Romans like the Hebrews and the Greeks,
believed in superstitious, magical and other
causes of plant diseases
Crop Pest Infestation and Pest Control after
Divinity or After Christ
 Plinius (70 AD) advocated the use of arsenic
insecticides
 Forsyth (1802) used sulfur to control diseases
 Prevost (1807) used copper against wheat
blunt spores
Classical example of disease that brought
death to millions of people
 Potato late blight disease outbreak in Ireland
(1845) – this disease caused the death of over
a million Irish due to starvation and the
immigration of several millions to USA
 the Irish famine resulted in a number of social
and economic dislocation in Ireland
 de Barry found that the Phytophthora
infestans caused potato late blight
Classical example on the successful use of
resistant cultivar to manage an insect pests
• The use of resistant grape root stock to control
Phylloxera vitifoliae in France (1866)
 the pest is a sucking insect hat was accidentally introduced
in France (1840) and spread to other European countries)
 By 1855, this pest had destroyed completely over 1.2 M ha
vineyards valued tat 10 billion francs (2 billion US dollar) in
France alone.
 this force vineyard owners to emigrate to Algeria and to
form a colony there
 A resistant root stock of the native grape from USA was
used to control this pest successfully n 1866.
• Coffee rust outbreak in Ceylon (Sri Lanka in
1869) ruined coffee plantations and caused
the closing of the Oriental Bank and forced
people to drink tea. This mark the beginning
of tea drinking.
• The gypsy moth, a very destructive pest of shade
and forest trees was imported to the USA to bred to
silkworm.
 Accidentally, it escaped into the woodlands and became
a serious pest by stripping leaves and killing fruit and
forest trees over thousand of square miles
 By 1927, over 25M dollars had been spent in controlling
this pest
 This is an example of a pest that was discovered to be
not a problem in its homeland where there are so many
of its natural enemies.
Gypsy moth larvae
Adults gypsy moth
 Miladet (1885) introduced the copper-lime
complex called Bordeaux mixture to control
grape downey mildew
This mixture also initiated work on herbicide
Classical example on the success use of
biological control against insect pests
 The first successful use of biocon agents against
an insect pests was started by Albert Koebele in
1886
 He used the vedalia beetle, to control a very serious
exotic pest, the cottony cushion scale
 The pest has been permannetly controlled since 1888.
 This is considered a miracle in the field of entomology
and it has inspired many people all over the world to
work on biological control of insect and other pests
Rodolia cardinalis
Vedalia beetle
• Koebele and Perkins successfully controlled
Lantana camara by using an insect from
Mexico.
Classical example on the success use of
biological control against weed pests
• The control of cactus plant in over 25M ha of
land by a single introduction of 2,750 eggs of
an insect, Cactoblastus cactarum from
Argentina in 1925
– This biocon agent is till effective until today
• In Germany (1917) due to a severe attack of
Phytophthora, practically the entire potato
crop was destroyed so that turnips became
the basic source of food.
– This is popular referred to as “Turnip winter”.
• DNOC (1932) was the first organic chemical
used to kill weeds
• DNOC – Dinitrocresol, 4,6-dinitro-o-cresol
Trade names (antinonnin, detal, dinitrol)
• The virus tristeza destroyed over 10 M citrus
trees in Argentina and 7 M out of 10 M citrus
trees in Brazil during 1937 – 1938.
– The susceptible trees were those grafted to the
root stock of the sour orange
– This stock is popular because it was resistant to
Phytophthora citrophora
• DDT – dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane was
formulated as a chemical warfare but was
found effective in controlling crop pest.
– It was widely used after WW2 but became popular
in 1945 when it was found to accumulate in the
fat bodies of animals and its concentration would
increase as it is passed from one organism to
another in the food chain - biomagnification
• Outbreak of Helminthosporium oryzae, leaf
spot of rice in Bengal in 1942 that resulted to
the death of over 1 M people
– This is popularly known as the Bengal famine
 2,4-D – or 2,4- dichlorophenoxy acetic acid
was discovered as a growth regulator in 1942.

2,4-D was first discovered as herbicide in 1944

 2,4-D was first imported to the Philippines in
1948.
 For the first time in history, the desert locust
that had plagued the semi-arid and Middle
East for thousand of years was controlled in
1968
• The hybrid monoculture of corn in the USA
caused the outbreak of the corn blight causing
over 15% reduction in yield in 1970
Crop Pest Infestation in the Philippines
• Coffee rust appeared in disastrous form in
Batangas in 1885 and reduced coffee harvest to
35%
– By 1890, coffee industry in Batangas was no longer
profitable.
– Batangas farmer shifted to citrus but it was likewise
wiped out in 1960 by the virus and a foot rot
disease
– This disease either a Tristeza and/or mycoplasma,
has already destroyed 7 M trees.
• Cadang cadang was discovered in Bicol
province in 1918 and since then the damage
due to this disease was estimated to have
caused a loss of 200 M dollar
• Abaca bunchy top was responsible for the
destruction of the abaca industry in Cavite and
Laguna Provinces in 1930
• Abaca mosaic, during a 10-year period (1940-
1950), reduced abaca production to a level
which made it unprofitable because of the
uncontrollable nature of the disease.
• Tungro, a virus disease of rice, affected about
70,000 ha of ricefield which resulted in a yield
loss of 1.22 M cavans of rough rice valued to
30,357,000 in Central Luzon in 1971.
• Downy Mildew, the scourge of corn industry in
South Asia, whose destructiveness is tied with
climatic conditio, is estimated to destroysa
much as 80 – 95% of Philippine crops.
– Yield loss from the 1974 – 1975 season was valued
to P172, 909, 005.
Some Crop Pest and Pest Control Activities
in the Philippines
• 1569 – Locust outbreak in Panay
• 1850 – Martinez bird, Aetheopsar cristatellus,
first imported biological control agent
• 1919 – Plant Pest Section (Entomology, Plant
Pathology and Quarantine Sections) of the
Bureau of Agriculture were created: they
required every citizen to help control locust
infestation
• 1921 – Introduction of parasitic insects to
Hawaii
– The success of this export prompted the Hawaiian
Sugar Planters Association to give 4,000 dollars to
the Entomology Department of UPCA
– Since then, 49 and 69 species have been imported
to and exported from the Philippines, respectively
• 1925 – first use of airplane to control locust
• 1934 – Trichogramma chilonis was imported
from Taiwan to control sugar cane borer
• 1936 – Uichanco’s Theory on locust outbreak
(Sun Spot Theory)
• 1946 – first import of pesticide
• 1952 – UP-Cornell Exchange Program
educated many crop protectionists of the
country
• 1954 – first study of the crop resistance to
pest
• 1960 – IRRI was established and the breeding
of pest resistant rice was highlighted
• 1968 – Rodent Research Center was created
• 1975 – IPB (Institute of Plant Breeding) was
established which started the breeding of pest
resistant vegetables, cereals and legumes
• 1976 – National Crop Protection Center
(NCPC) was created to coordinate crop
protection activities in the country
– Ridomil was used to control downy mildew
• 1980 – National Institute of Molecular Biology
and Biotechnology (BIOTECH) was created
where the mass production of microorganism
to control pests was highlighted.
• 1987 – Trichogramma was used to control
corn borer and cotton boll worm
• 1990 – Paecilomyces lilacinus was mass
produced to control root knot nematodes
• 1992 – Plutella xylostella(DBM) was controlled
successfully by imported parasitoids,
Diadegma semiclausom and Cotesia plutellae
 Diadegma semiclausum

Diamond backmoth, Plutella xylostella

Cotesia plutellae
• Reference:
• UPCA Crop Protection Manual
 Importance of Insects to man and agriculture

Beneficial effects of insects to human

1.Pollination
2.As source of useful products
a. Silk – from silkworm pupa
b. Honey – from honey bees
c. Shellac – from lac insect
d. Cochineal – from cactus mealybug
3.As food for valued animals
4.As food for human
5.Natural control of pests
6. Other uses:

a. As scavenger/decomposer – burrowing
insects

b.As ecological indicators – plecopterans

c.Use in genetic research – Drosophila,flies

d.Entertainment – roaches racing beetle

wrestling
Harmful Effects of Insects to Human

1. Source of annoyance and injury

2. As transmitters of diseases of humans and

animals

3. As economic pests
 DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS OF INSECTS

Insects may be distinguish from other arthropods by
the following characteristics:

1. Body with three distinct regions: HEAD, THORAX and

ABDOMEN
2. One pair of antennae
3. Three pairs of legs (a few insects are legless and some
larvae possess additional leg-like appendages (such as
prolegs) on the abdominal; segments.
4. Often one or two pairs of wings, borne by the second
and/or the third of the three thoracic segments
5. The postoral appendages of the head typically consisting
of mandibles, a pair of maxillae, labrum and labium
The Insect Body Wall is Composed of Three Parts

1. Cuticle – non-cellular layer of the body wall

- covers the entire body surface and also lines the insects’
air tube lining, salivary glands and parts of the digestive
tracts.

2. Epidermal cell – cellular layer of the body wall

- secretes molting fluid involved in the growth process

3. Basement membrane – separates body wall from

internal organs
 Insect Cuticle is made up of three layers

1.epicuticle – outermost thin layer which contains

cuticulin, wax, and cement.

2.exocuticle – middle part which gives the cuticle

its characteristics strength and resilience
 it is formed of chitin (a resistant substance
insoluble to water, alcohol, alkali, and dilute
acids.

3.endocuticle – innermost thick layer of cuticle

HEAD – comprises the globular to capsule like
anterior body segment of an insect which
bears the eyes, antennae and mouthparts

performs four major functions:

1. ingestion of food
2. major sensory perception
3. coordination of bodily activities
4. protection of coordinating centers
Head of Insect
Head of Insect

Genae
‘Cheeks’
Head of Insect

Compound eyes
Head of Insect

Ocelli
Simple eyes
Head of Insect

Antennae
Head of Insect

Clypeus
Head of Insect

Frons
Head of Insect

Mouth
Head of Insect

Labrum
Head of Insect

Mandibles
Head of Insect

Maxilla
Head of Insect

Labium
 Classification based on head position in relation to the long axis of
the body

1. Hypognathous head – condition wherein the mouthparts are at the

right angle to the body axis
 Examples: grasshoppers, roaches, mantids, larvae
of moths and butterflies

2. Opisthognathous head – condition wherein the mouthparts are

projecting backward between the legs
 Examples: cicada, true bugs, leafhoppers

3. Prognathous head – mouthparts is in line to the body axis.

 commonly seen in carnivorous and/or forms that
burrow in wood or soil
Examples: termites, ground beetle
 Prognathous head

C
Hypognathous
Opisthognathous head
 MOUTHPARTS – vary in type depending on the
kind of food the insects eat.

The following are the mouthparts of insects:

1.Mandibles – tooth-like structure used for

chewing, grinding, tearing or pinching-off solid
food heavily sclerotized, paired and
unsegmented.

2.Maxillae – helps in putting the food into the

mouth.
3. Labrum – “upper lip ” which is movable and
flap-like structure

4. Labium – “lower lip” found posterior to the

maxillae

5. Hypopharnyx – a central tonguelike which

drops from the membranous floor of the
head, and bears the opening of the salivary
ducts.
 Types of Insect Mouthparts

1. Chewing/mandibulate type - the mandibles cut

off and grind solid food, and the maxillae and
labium push it into the esophagous
Examples: Orthoptera, Isoptera,
Odonata, Coleoptera, larvae of
Lepidoptera etc.
2. Cutting-Sponging type – the mandibles are
produced into sharp blades, and the maxillae into
long probing style.

 the two cut and tear the integument causing

blood to flow from the wound.

 Blood is collected by the sponge-like labium and

conveyed into the hypopharynx

 Examples are: horseflies, black flies and other

Dipterans
Head and mouthparts of the horse fly. (A) Anterior viewof the
head; and (B–E) lateral views of the
separated mouthparts. [From R. E. Snodgrass, Principles of
Insect Morphology.
 3. Sponging type – the mandibles and maxillae are
non-functional and the remaining parts form a
proboscis with a sponge-like apex called labella.

• solid food (ex. Sugar) is converted into liquid

before sucking it up

• Example: housefly
Head and mouthparts of the house fly. (A) Lateral view of
the head with the proboscis extended; and (B)
anterodistal view of the proboscis. [From R. E.
Snodgrass, Principles of Insect Morphology
 4. Chewing-Lapping type – the mandibles and labrum
are of chewing type and are used for grasping prey,
molding wax or nest materials.

• the labium and maxillae are developed into an

elongate structures to get nectars from flowers.

• Examples: bees, wasps

•
5. Piercing-Sucking type – the mouthparts of this
group are modified to pierce tissues and suck juices
from them.
Examples: mosquitoes, hemipterans
6. Siphoning type – the food either
nectar or liquid food already are sucked
up by means of a long proboscis
composed only of a united galea of each
maxillae.

Examples: moths and butterflies

Order Lepidoptera:
Hummingbird Order Lepidoptera:
sphinx moth Crossline skipper

Order Hymenoptera: Blueberry bee,

Habropoda laboriosa
7. Rasping- Sucking type -has a cone-shaped beak
formed from clypeus, labrum, parts of the maxillae
and labium.

Example: thrips
Antennae – elongated, segmented structures of
varying designs and sizes

are used for sensory purposes

Some of the information that can be detected by insect

antennae includes: motion and orientation, odor, sound,
humidity, and a variety of chemical cues.

composed of three (3) main parts:

1.scape – basal segment

2.pedicel – second segment

3.flagellum – whiplike part beyond the pedicel

 Types of Antennae

1. Setaceous – bristlelike, segments taper distally

-Examples: green leafhopper,
damselfly, dragonfly
 2. Filiform – antennae have a thread-like shape
• -Examples: grasshoppers, crickets, roaches,
tiger and ground beetle,
3. Moniliform – beadlike, segments similar in size and
nearly spherical in shape. Example: termites
 4. Plumose – feathery, most segments with whorls
of long hair
• Example: male mosquitoes

Order Diptera: Mosquito male, Culex

 5. Geniculate – elbowed, the first
segment is long and the following
segments are small and going off at
an angle to the first
Examples: ants, chalcid wasps, bees
 Order Hymenoptera: Carpenter
Order Hymenoptera: Blueberry bee, ant, Camponotus sp
Habropoda laboriosa,

Order Hymenoptera: Bumble bee,

Bombus sp.
 6. Clavate – clubbed, segments
gradually increase in diameter
distally
Example: carrion beetle
 7. Aristate – the last segment enlarged
and bears a conspicuous dorsal bristle
called arista
Example – house fly

Bactrocera dorsalis
 8. Stylate – the last segment with an elongated
terminal style like or finger like process, the style
• Example: robber fly, snipe fly
9. Capitate – having a head, terminal segments
suddenly enlarged
Examples: Butterflies (order Lepidoptera).
 10. Serrate – sawlike, the distal half or 2/3 of
the antennal segments more or less triangular.
Example: click beetles

Order Coleoptera: Click beetle,

Agriotes bicolor,
 11. Pectinate – comblike, most segments with
long slender lateral process
Example: fire- colored beetles and
fireflies

Order Coleoptera: Fire-colored beetle,

Neopyrochroa flabellata,
Order Coleoptera: Firefly
12. Lamellate – leaflike, terminal segments
expanded laterally to form rounded lobes
Example: june beetle
 Insect Eyes

1.Compound eyes – located on each side of the

head of most adult insects, which consist of
many hexagonal elements known as facets or
ommatidia

- number of facets or ommatidia differ in number

from only a few to as many as 28, 000 in
dragonflies

- ommatidia consists of light gathering apparatus

(lens and crystalline cone) and light sensing
apparatus ( rhabdom).
ocelli

Compound
eyes
2. Simple eyes or ocelli – are located
between compound eyes on the front of the
head
- there are three of them, upper two are
in pair, one on each side of the meson
and are called the lateral ocelli, the lower
one on the meson is the median ocellus
- they are small and have a single lens
- detect light and darkness
- caterpillars (lepidoptera), have only
simple eyes while others ( springtails) have
no eyes at all.
ocelli
 THORAX – is the middle region of the insect body which is
connected from the head by a flexible membranous neck
(cervix)
- contains 3 distinct segments: prothorax, mesothorax
and metathorax
- each thoracic segment bears a pair of jointed legs,
and in most adult insects the mesothorax and metathorax
each have a pair of wings.
- each thoracic segment is composed of hardened plates
that give it rigidity, such as:

Notum/tergum – upper plate

sternum – lower plate
pleuron – side/lateral plate
 Thorax
Prothorax:
1st thoracic segment
1st pair of legs
 Thorax
Mesothorax:
Middle segment of thorax
2nd pair of legs
1st pair of wings (forewing)
 Thorax
Metathorax:
Last segment of thorax
3rd pair of legs
2nd pair of wings (hindwings)
Pronotum
The pronotum is the dorsal sclerite of the
prothorax, which can be highly modified in
various orders such as the Hemiptera,
Blattaria, and Coleoptera.
Treehoppers (order Hemiptera) have some of the most bizarre
pronotums of all insects.
 Hercules beetle

Atlas beetle

German cockroach, Blattella

germanica
 Insect Legs
coxa - the basal segment of the
trochanter insect leg (ball joint where human
leg fits into thigh)
trochanter - segment between
coxa and femur
femur femur - the third leg segment,
(human thigh bone)
tibia
coxa tibia - the fourth leg segment,
tarsus
(shin bone)
tarsus - the part of the leg
beyond the tibia (foot)
 LOCOMOTORY APPENDAGES

Legs – are articulated appendages comprising five

segments.

These are:

1.Coxa – the proximal segment that is usually short

and stout
2. Trochanter – connects the coxa with the femur
3. Femur – the stoutest and sometimes the largest
segment of the leg
in some instances, it is armed with strong spines
4. Tibia – is often a long, slender structure with
downward-pointing spines that aid in climbing.

5. Tarsus – usually made up of several

subsegments called tarsomeres, terminate in a
pretarsus.

pretarsus usually include in a pair of claws,

between the claw for adhesion purposes is called
the arolium

 if pad is present at the base of its claw, the pads

are called pulvilli
 Tarsal claw

pulvilli

empodium

arolium

Terminal tarsal segment

 Types of Insect Legs

1. Ambulatory legs are used for walking. The

structure is similar to cursorial (running) legs.
Examples: Bugs (order Hemiptera), leaf
beetles beetles (Order Coleoptera).

Order Hemiptera:
Boxelder bug, Boisea
trivittata, Stick insect
2. Cursorial legs are modified for running.

Order Blattaria: Oriental cockroach, Order Coleoptera: Ground beetle

Blatta orientalis,

Order Coleoptera: Bronze tiger

beetle,
3. Fossorial fore legs are modified for digging.

Order Orthoptera: Southern mole

cricket, Scapteriscus borelli

Order Hemiptera: Cast skin of cicada

nymph, Cyclochila australasiae,
4. Natatorial legs are modified for swimming.
These legs have long setae on the tarsi.

Order Coleoptera: Predaceous Order Hemiptera: Backswimme

diving beetle, Rhantus sp Aquatic bug
5. Raptorial fore legs modified for grasping
(catching prey).

Order Mantodea:
Carolina mantis, Order Hemiptera: Water scorpion
Stagomantis carolina,

Order Hemiptera: Giant water bug,

Lethocerus americanus,
6. Saltatorial hind legs adapted for jumping.
These legs are characterized by an elongated
femur and tibia.

Order Orthoptera: Redlegged Order Orthoptera: House cricket,

grasshopper, Melanoplus Acheta domestica
femurrubrum
 INSECT WINGS

 Insect wings show much diversity, varying in

shape, texture, and coloration.

 Some specific types of wings are used to

identify insect orders, such as:

1. Elytra – forewing of beetles (Coleoptera)

 are thick and hard with uniform texture which
is used to protect the soft abdomen
 Order Coleoptera: Flatheaded wood
borer, Buprestis fasciata

Order Coleoptera: Colorado

Order Coleoptera: Margined blister
potato beetle, Leptinotarsa
beetle, Epicauta pestifera
decemlineata,
 2. Hemelytra – forewing of true bugs (Hemiptera)
 are a combination of thick and soft , flexible and
almost transparent apex or posterior part.

Order Hemiptera: Big- Leaf footed bug

eyed bug, Geocoris sp., Brown stink bug

Four-lined plant bug,

 3. Fringed type – wings of thrips
(Thysanoptera)
 are hair-like along the margins of the central
using structure.

Flower thrips
 4. Membranous type – wings of caddisflies,
(Trichoptera), odonatans
 are soft, flexible, translucent or transparent
with prominent wing viens.
Order Neuroptera: Green lacewing,
Chrysoperla sp,

Order Isoptera: Termites,

Reticulitermes virginicus
 5. Halteres – hindwings of flies and mosquitoes
(Diptera)
 are small knob-like structures which are use
for balancing instead of flight.

Order Diptera: Crane fly, Tipula Order Diptera: Xylophagid,

oleracea, Xylophagus sp.,

Order Diptera: Soldier fly

 6. Tegmina – forewing of grasshoppers, roaches
(Orthoptera)
 are leathery frontwings which serves to
protect the membranous hindwings and soft
abdomen
 Order Orthoptera: Katydid,
Pterophylla camellifolia

Order Mantodea: Madagascan

marbled mantis, Polyspillota
aeruginosa
 SCALY WINGS

7. Scaly wings of butterflies and moths

Order Lepidoptera: Io moth, Order Lepidoptera: Tiger swallowtail,

Automeris io Papilio turnus
 ABDOMEN – this is third body region and
usually the largest part especially among
females.

 it is primarily for reproduction, excretion and

digestion because the abdomen bears the
genitalia, the anus, outwardly, and the
digestive system inside, respectively.
 In some insects such as bees and wasps, the
distal end of the abdomen is specialized into a
short needle-like extension for stinging their
enemies. In case of honeybees, the sting left
on the skin of their victim is like a syringe with
irritating substances.
A parasitic wasp attempts to sting a larva
of the oblique-banded leafroller
Other Important Parts of the Abdomen

 Spiracles – these are external openings of the

respiratory system found along the side of
the thorax and the abdomen.

 Tympanum or “ear” – this is located on the first

abdominal tergite in grasshoppers but may be
found elsewhere in the body of other insects. It is
the main auditory organ.

Cerci – slender, pointed structures found on the

eleventh segment of the abdomen
 Spiracles

• Used for respiration

• Usually 1 – 10 pairs
• Can be important for ID
purposes (maggot larvae)
 Abdominal Appendages

Roach
Mayfly Earwig Silverfish

Cerci
• Paired abdominal segments
• Sensory or defensive in nature
• Often reduced or retracted into the
body Cornicles
• Tubular structures on the 5th or 6th segment
• Secrete defensive fluids
 Metamorphosis of insects

Definition of Terms

Metamorphosis – the change in form during the

development period after the embryonic
development.
Ecdysis/Molting – the process by which an insect shed
off old skin (cuticle) to provide enough space to grow.
 most insects molts at least three or four times
during normal development
Exuviae – old skin (cuticle) left after molting
Stadium – is the total period between any two molts
Instar – is the actual insect during a stadium
• The molting of cicada
 Types of metamorphosis

1. Ametabolous/No metamorphosis
 there is no change in the appearance of the
young compared to the adult, except in size and
development of reproductive structures or
genitalia.

 stages of this type are egg, young and adult

 examples are: Collembola, Protura, Diplura and

Thysanura
Typical development of an apterygote insect with little or no metamorphosis
e.g. Bristletail (Order Thysanura)
2. Metabolous – shows distinct changes during
growth and development

There are three (3) types of it:

a. Paurometabolous – simple, gradual or direct

metamorphosis in which the immatures (nymph)
resemble the parent (adult) except size, wings
and genitalia development.

 example are: Hemiptera, Isoptera,, Orthoptera,

Thysanoptera, Dermaptera, etc.
Typical development of a pterygote insect with a simple metamorphosis
(Exopterygota)
e.g. Locust (Order Orthoptera)
 b. Hemimetabolous – incomplete
metamorphosis in which accessory organs like
gills are present in immature which is called
naiads.

 naiads looks differently from adults which

have wings and terrestial
 naiads and adults are predatory but feed on
different foods
 stages are egg, naiad adult
 examples are: Odonata, Ephemeroptera,
Plecoptera
Adult and naiad of dragonfly
Adult and naiad of damselfly
Adult and naiad of mayfly
 c. Holometabolous – complete metamorphosis
where all stages differ in appearance

 the stages are egg, larva, pupa, adult

 examples are: Lepidoptera, Coleoptera,

Hymenoptera, Neuroptera, Diptera, etc.
Typical development of a pterygote insect with a complex metamorphosis
(Endopterygota)
e.g. Moth (Order Lepidoptera)
 Larval Types
Vermiform
• Maggot-like, worm-like
• Legless
• With or without a developed
head

Elateriform
• Wireworm-like
• Elongate body
• Cylicrical
http://comp.uark.edu/~pjmcleod/corn/Fig12.jpg
• Hardshelled
• Short legs
 Larval Types
www.ento.okstate.edu
Eruciform
• Caterpillar-like
• Cylindrical body
• Well developed head
• Short antennae
• Thoracic and
prolegs

Campodeiform
• Elongate body
• Somewhat flattened
• Usually well developed
antennae
• Active
 Larval Types
Scarabaeiform
• Grub-like
• Usually curved (C-shaped)
• Well developed head
Marlin E. Rice • Thoracic legs, NO prolegs
 Larval Types by Order
Eruciform: Campodeiform: Vermiform:
• Lepidoptera • Neuroptera • Diptera
• Mecoptera • Tricoptera • Siphonaptera
• Hymenoptera* • Coleoptera • Hymenoptera
• Coleoptera*
• Lepidoptera*

Elateriform: Scarabaeiform:
• Coleoptera* • Coleoptera*

* Not the most common larval form of the order

Pupal Types
Obtect
• Appendages more
or less glued to
body
• May be covered by
cocoon
• Lepidoptera, some
Diptera
Pupal Types
Exarate
• Appendages free
• Not covered by cocoon
• “mummified adult”
• Most insects with complete
metamorphosis – NOT
Lepidopteran or Diptera
Pupal Types

Coarctate
• Like exarate but
covered with
hardened cuticle
• Some Diptera
INSECT CLASSIFICATION
 Classification and
Identification of Insects

General Classification of Insects

Nomenclature – naming of organisms
Classification – ordering them into a heirarchy
of categories
Taxonomy – involves theoretical basis for
classification and the study of classification schemes
Systematists – specialist working in these areas

Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Classification System
• Kingdom (Animalia)
• Phylum (Arthropoda)
• Class (Insecta)
• Order (Hymenoptera)
• Family (Apidae)
• Genus (Apis)
• Species (Mellifera)
• Common Name: Honey Bee
 Why Learn Classification?
• Groups have similar biology and
appearance
• More specific groups have closer
biology
• Characters relate to damage and
pest status
• When a name is known we can look
up more information
 Classification System
3 Kingdoms 5 Kingdoms 6 Kingdoms 3 Domains
(1894) (1959) (1977) (1990)
Protista Monera Eubacteria Bacteria

Plantae Protista Archaebacteria Archaea

Animalia Fungi Protista Eukarya
Plantae Fungi
Animalia Plantae
Animalia
 Classification System
• Kingdom (Animalia)
• Phylum (Arthropoda)
• Class (Insecta)
• Order (Hymenoptera)
• Family (Apidae)
• Genus (Apis)
• Species (Mellifera)
• Common Name: Honey Bee
 Animalia Characteristics
• Multicellular
• Organelles have
– Nucleus
– No chloroplasts or cell walls
• Move via contractile proteins
– cilia, flagella, or muscular
organs
• Ingest nutrients
 Classification System
• Kingdom (Animalia)
• Phylum (Arthropoda)
• Class (Insecta)
• Order (Hymenoptera)
• Family (Apidae)
• Genus (Apis)
• Species (Mellifera)
• Common Name: Honey Bee
Arthropoda Characteristics
• Exoskeleton
• Chitin
• Segmented appendages
• Segmented body
• Bilateral symmetry
• Dorsal tubular heart
• Ventral paired nerve chord
 Classification System
• Kingdom (Animalia)
• Phylum (Arthropoda)
• Class (Insecta)
• Order (Hymenoptera)
• Family (Apidae)
• Genus (Apis)
• Species (Mellifera)
• Common Name: Honey Bee
Classes of Arthropods
• Arachnida – spiders, mites, ticks

• Diplopoda – millipedes

• Chilopoda – centipedes

• Insecta – insects
Arachnida Characteristics
Ticks, mites, spiders, scorpions

• Body divided into two parts

• Four pairs of legs
• No antennae
• No wings
Cat-faced Spider
 Chilopoda
Centipedes

• Longer antennae than millipedes

• Flattened in cross section
• 1 pair of legs per segment
• Beneficial – prey on other
arthropods
• Are fast moving
• Have poison glands & can
inflict a painful bite
 Diplopoda
Millipedes
• Feed on fungi and
decaying plants
• Can damage plants
• 2 pair of legs per
segment
• 2 visible body parts –
head and body
• Round in cross section
• Slow moving
Insecta Characteristics
• Mandibulate
– Mouth consists of mandible, maxilla & labia
• 3 body segments
– Head
– Thorax
– Abdomen
• Pair of antenna
• Most have compound eyes
 Classification System
• Kingdom (Animalia)
• Phylum (Arthropoda)
• Class (Insecta)
• Order (Hymenoptera)
• Family (Apidae)
• Genus (Apis)
• Species (Mellifera)
• Common Name: Honey Bee
 Orders of Insects
• Collembola – spring tails
• Thysanura – silver fish
• Ephemerptera – maylfies
• Odanota – dragonflies
• Phasmida – walking sticks
• Orthoptera - grasshoppers •
• Mantodea – preying mantids •
• Blattaria - roaches
• Isoptera - termites
• Dermaptera - earwigs
• Plecoptera - stoneflies
• Psocoptera – book & bark lice •
• Phthiraptera – true lice
• Hemiptera – true bugs
• Homoptera – aphids/hoppers
• Thysanoptera - thrips
• Neuroptera – lace wings
Coleoptera - beetles
Mecoptera – scorpionfly
• Siphonaptera - fleas
• Diptera – flies, mosquitoes
• Tricoptera - caddisflies
Lepidoptera – butterfly/moth
• Hymenoptera – ants, wasps,
bees
No. of Species per Order
Aprx. 1,000,000 species
Protura Collembola
Diplura Microcoryphia
Thysanura Ephemerptera
Hymenoptera

ra
Odanota Grylloblattaria

te
ip
Phasmida Orthopthera

em
H Mantodea Blattaria
Isoptera Dermaptera
Lepidoptera Embiidina Plecoptera
Zoraptera Psocoptera
Phthiraptera Hemiptera
Coleoptera
Homoptera Thysanoptera
Neuroptera Coleoptera
Diptera
Strepsistra Mecoptera
Siphonaptera Diptera
Trichoptera Lepidoptera
Hymenoptera
Helpful Hints for Identification
• Pictures
• Specimens from a collection
• Biology
– Habitat – soil, wood, plant, food, aquatic
– Sometimes host specific
– Characteristic damage patterns
– Time of year may help
• Rear immatures to adults
• Keys
• Ask the expert
 Classification and
Identification of Insects

Major Categories for European Corn Borer

Phylum – Arthropoda
Class – Insecta
Order – Lepidoptera
Family – Pyralidae
Genus – Ostrinia
Species – Ostrinia nubilalis
Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Classification and
Identification of Insects

• Scientific name of a species is binomial

• Composed of 2 names: a genus and
specific names
• It is conventional, but not required for the
species name to have the name of a
person who first described the species a a
suffix

Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Classification and
Identification of Insects

• Ostrinia nubilalis (Hübner)

Parenthesis around the authors name indicates that when
Hübner originally described the species, he placed it in another
genus.

An author name without parenthesis means that the species

remains in the genus originally used by the describing author

Carolus Linnaeus – Swedish naturalist who advanced the system of

binomial nomenclature
Scientific names are Latinized and usually refer to some characteristics
of the animal or group name
Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Classification and
Identification of Insects

• binomial name of a species is always printed in

italics,
• if handwritten, is underlined to indicate italics
• Genera’s name and higher categories begins
with a capital letter
• specific names and the subspecific names of
species begin with lowercase letter
• Common names are also used but not covered
with the formal rules of nomenclature
Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Classification and
Identification of Insects

Classification is based on the following:

 structure of the wings and mouthparts
 metamorphosis and
 other various characteristics

Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Classification and
Identification of Insects

Subclass Apterygota – primitively

wingless insects
 Protura – proturans
 Collembola – springtails
 Diplura – diplurans
 Thysanura – bristletails, silverfish

Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Classification and
Identification of Insects

• Subclass Apterygota
• Subclass Pterygota
Class Insecta
 Division Exopterygota
 Division Endopterygota

Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Classification and
Identification of Insects

Subclass Pterygota – winged and

secondarily wingless
insects
 Division Exopterygota- simply body change
during growth (incomplete
metamorphosis)
 Division Endopterygota – complex body
change during growth
(complete metamorphosis)

Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Classification and
Identification of Insects
Division Exopterygota
 Ephemeroptera – mayflies
“Ephemero”- short lived or for a day;
“ptera”- with wings
 Odonata – dragonflies and damselflies
“Odon”- tooth
 Plecoptera – stoneflies
“Pleco”- folded or plaited
 Dermaptera – earwigs; “Derma” – skin
Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Classification and
Identification of Insects
 Orthoptera – grass hoppers, crickets,
(Ortho”- straight)
 Blattaria – cockroaches
 Phasmida – walking stick
 Mantodea – preying mantis
 Isoptera – termites ( “Iso”- equal)
 Embioptera – webspinner (“Embio”- lively)
 Zoraptera – zorapterans (“zor”- pure;
Larry V. Aceres “aptera”- wingless)
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
 Psocoptera-
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology) psocids (“Psoco”- rub small)
 Classification and
Identification of Insects

 Phthiraptera – chewing and sucking lice

 Thysanoptera – thrips ( “Thysano”- fringe)
 Hemiptera – bugs ( “Hemi” – half)
 Homoptera – aphids, scale insects, hoppers,
cicadas, pyllids, whiteflies, ( “Homo”-
alike, uniform)

Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Classification and
Identification of Insects

Division Endopterygota
 Neuroptera – alderflies, antlions,
dobsonflies,fishflies, lacewings,
snakeflies,owlflies (Neuro- nerve)
 Coleoptera – beetles and weevils (Coleo-
sheath)
 Strepsiptera – twisted-winged parasites
(Strepsi- twisted)
 Mecoptera – scorpionflies
Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Classification and
Identification of Insects

 Trichoptera – caddisflies ( Tricho- hair)

 Lepidoptera – moths and butterflies
(Lepido- scale)
 Diptera – flies ( Di – two)
 Siphonaptera – fleas ( Siphon – tube;
aptera – wingless)
 Hymenoptera – ants, bees, wasps,
sawflies (Hymeno –
membrane)
Larry V. Aceres
Ma. Asuncion L. Salibay
Lecturer
CropGeneral Entomology
Protection (Entomology)
 Orders of Insects
• Collembola – spring tails
• Thysanura – silver fish
• Ephemeroptera – maylfies
• Odonata – dragonflies
• Phasmida – walking sticks
• Orthoptera - grasshoppers •
• Mantodea – preying mantids •
• Blattaria - roaches
• Isoptera - termites
• Dermaptera - earwigs
• Plecoptera - stoneflies
• Psocoptera – book & bark lice •
• Phthiraptera – true lice
• Hemiptera – true bugs
• Homoptera – aphids/hoppers
• Thysanoptera - thrips
• Neuroptera – lace wings
Coleoptera - beetles
Mecoptera – scorpionfly
• Siphonaptera - fleas
• Diptera – flies, mosquitoes
• Tricoptera - caddisflies
Lepidoptera – butterfly/moth
• Hymenoptera – ants, wasps,
bees
1. Collembola
Springtails
• Wingless
• Small
• Hop with tail
appendage (furcula)
• Nuisance, rarely pests
• Soil, leaf litter
• Metamorphosis: young
resemble adults
 2. Thysanura
Silverfish and Firebrats

• Wingless
• Long antennae
• Three tails
• Scales on the body Silverfish
• Nuisance, pests in
libraries Firebrat
• Mouthparts: Chewing
• Metamorphosis:
Young resemble
adults
 3. Ephemeroptera
Mayflies
• Upright wings
• Only group to molt
once winged
• Elongate body
• Three tails
• Fish food, occasional
nuisance
• Mouth parts: chewing
• Metamorphosis:
aquatic immatures,
winged adults
 4. Odonata
Dragonflies and damselflies
• Two pairs of
membranous wings
• Large conspicuous
eyes
• Dragonflies hold
wings flat
• Damselflies hold
wings together
• Beneficial predators
 5. Plecoptera
Stoneflies

• Large soft-bodied insects

• Four wings held flat over
the back
• Hind pair fold fan-like
• Long antennae
• Larvae are aquatic
• Fish food, scavengers
6. Orthoptera
Grasshoppers, Crickets, Katydids
• Front pair of wings
usually slender and
leathery
• Hind pair of wings
broad and fan-like
• Characteristic jumping
hind leg
• Plant pests, few
predators
 Crickets

House Cricket

Field Cricket
 Katydids

Fork-tailed Bush Katydid Broad-winged Katydid

Mormon Cricket

Chapparal Katydid True Katydid

 Blattaria .7
Cockroaches
• Flattened bodies
• Head is concealed
from above
• Two pairs of wings
• Eggs in a capsule
called an ootheca
• Unpleasant odor
• Household pests
American Cockroach
8. Mantodea
Mantids
• Large, elongate & slow moving
• Front legs grasp prey
• Biological control agents
• Leaf mimics

Eggs
 Praying Mantis

Chinese Mantis California Mantis

9. Phasmida
Walkingsticks

• Elongated bodies
• Slow moving
• Found on trees or
shrubs
• Wingless as adults
• Foliage feeder
• Rarely a pest
10. Dermaptera
Earwigs
• Medium sized insects
• Four wings
• Hind wings are folded under
front
• Abdomen exposed
• Cerci on last abdominal
segment
• Predators
• Nuisance pests, chew on
foliage
 11. Isoptera
Termites
• Small, soft bodied
• Yellowish or whitish insects
• Wide waist, bead-like
antennae (not bent)
• Liven in colonies in wood
• Three castes: workers,
soldiers and reproductives
• Structural pests
12. Psocoptera
Psocids (Booklice)
• Tiny, soft-bodied
insects
• Four wings or none at
all
• Microscopic to ¼ inch
• “Busted upper lip”
(swollen clypeus)
• Scavengers, pests in
libraries and stored
food, webbing on trees
 13. Phthiraptera
Head Lice
Lice
• Wingless parasites
Crab Lice
on most birds and
mammals
• Deposit eggs on
hair or feathers
• Bloodsucking,
transmit diseases
Head Lice
 14.Thysanoptera
Thrips
• Tiny insects about 1/8 in long
• Two pair of slender wings,
fringed with long hair
• Legs and antennae are short
• Only pest with asymmetrical
mouthparts
• Plant pests, minor bites of
humans, frequent pests in
greenhouses and blooms Western Flower Thrips
 15. Hemiptera
True Bugs

• Four wings, folded flat

• Front pair are thickened and leathery
• Beak arises from the front of head
• Plant feeders, predators
 True Bugs
Adults

Tarnished plant bug Leaf-footed bug

Giant water bug

Assassin bug
Milkweed bug

Bed bug Backswimmer

Stink bug
 True Bugs
Nymphs

Tarnished plant bug Leaf-footed bug

Giant water bug

Assassin bug
Milkweed bug

Bed bug Backswimmer

Stink bug
 16. Homoptera
Leafhoppers, Scales, Aphids, Mealybugs

• May or may not have wings

• Four wings when present and are held
roof-like over body
• Feed on plants
• Mouthparts: sucking with beak arising
from the hind part of the head
• Metamorphosis: Gradual
• Many are pests and can transmit diseases
 Leafhoppers
Spines on hind tibia

Potato Leafhopper Scarlet & Green Leafhopper

Beet Leafhopper Rose Leafhopper

Scales

• Female – host specific, no

antenna, legless & wingless
• Male – 1 pair wings, 1 pair
haltere; only reproduce,
antenna
 Aphids

• Plant specific
• Transmit viruses
• Cornicles – “tail pipes”
• Symbiotic relationship with
ants
•
 Mealybugs
• Characteristic trait:
body covered with wax
or filamentous waxy
secretions

• They feed on all parts of

the plant, including roots,
and reproduce all summer
• Many times they are
controlled by natural
enemies
 17.Neuroptera
Lacewings, Antlions

• Fragile insects
• Two pair of many veined
wings – held roof-like
over their abdomen
• Long antennae
• Many beneficial/predators
 Lacewings
Lacewing Larva

Green Lacewing

Lacewing Nest

Brown Lacewing
Lacewing Eggs
Antlions
Larvae live in the
soil and seek prey

Antlion Larvae

Antlion Adults
18.Coleoptera
Beetles & Weevils
• Largest order of insects
• Usually two pairs of
wings
• Front pair are thick
(elytra)
• Straight line down the
middle of back
• Plant feeders,
predators, scavengers,
wood borers, etc
 Weevils
Immature weevils • Many are economic
pests
• Elongated rostrum Pecan Weevil

(nose)
• Like to play dead

Rose Weevil
Boll Weevil Alfalfa Weevil
June Beetle/White Grub
Adults
• 1/2 to 5/8 inches long
• Reddish brown
• Noctural
• Can be a nuisance near
light
Larvae (grubs):
• C-shaped
• White with brown head
• Three pairs of legs
• Soil-dwelling
• Feed on roots of grasses
Carpet Beetles
Adult:
• Small, stout, robust, or
elongate oval
Larva:
• Usually covered with hairs
Scavengers of plant and animal
products
• the ‘CSI’ bug (forensics)
• leather, skins
• museum specimens
• wool
• stored foods
• carrion (‘bone cleaners’)
Cucumber Beetle
• Phytophagous (plant eaters)
• Usually oval shaped
• Can be colorful with stripes
or spotted markings (may
fade with age)
• Prefer shady cool places
such as leaf and melon
undersides
• Keep leaves dry; lift fruits
to keep the underside dry
• Adults overwinter in weedy
areas – therefore keep weeds
cut down all year
Ladybird Beetles
• 1st biological control agent (cottony
cushion scale)
• Predators of aphids & eggs
19.Mecoptera
Scorpionflies
• Small to medium sized
• Four long, narrow wings
• Long antennae
• Larvae look like
caterpillars
• Larvae live in damp soil
• Adults are seasonal in
summer
• Adults feed on insects
• Harmless
 20.Diptera
True Flies, Mosquitoes, Gnats, Midges

• Winged or wingless
• One pair of membranous
wings – one pair halteres
• Few feed on plant foliage
• Some of the most
beneficial insects
• Beneficial as pollinators,
parasites & predator,
stings are a nuisance
 True Flies

House Fly

Horse Fly

Deer Fly Cherry Fruit Fly

Mosquitoes
• Larvae are aquatic
• Tiny hairs outline the
margins of wings
• Adults feed on nectar
or blood (females only)
• Females must have blood
meal to produce young
• Crepuscular or nocturnal
• Males - plumose antenna
 21.Hymenoptera
Ants, bees, wasps, hornets, sawflies
• Winged or Wingless
• Two pair of membranous wings
• Few feed on plant foliage
• Many beneficial insects -
pollinators, parasites &
predators
• Stings are a nuisance
• Complete metamorphosis
• Many social insects
 Carpenter Ants
• Black in color
• Build nests in old Queen

trees and logs Nest

• May invade homes

in search of food
Red Harvester Ants

• Will sting or bite

• Colonies occur in
open areas

• Do not invade
homes
Honey Bees
• Social insects
• Division of labor:
• queen –matriarch of the colony,
lays eggs
• drones – males, only purpose to
mate; kicked out in rough times
• workers – females, tend to all
duties (care for larvae and queen,
food collection, etc)
• Communication - ‘Waggle
Dance’
Yellow Jackets & Hornets
• Very aggressive Bald-faced Hornet

• Distinguished from bees by

their thin "waists"
• Fold their wings lengthwise Western Yellow Jacket

when at rest
• Prey on a variety of
arthropods, may forage on
human (especially sweets and
meats)
• Considered beneficial insects Paper Wasps
 Sawflies
• Adults resemble bees or small
Adult
wasps
• Larvae resemble caterpillars
• >5 pairs of abdominal prolegs
• Often spotted or striped
• ½ to 1 inch long
• External feeders on foliage
• Entire leaf or skeletonize
• Often clump together
• Wide host range including:
Larvae conifers, oaks, black locust, ash,
black walnut & woody ornamentals
 Sawflies
Blue Steel Sawfly • Small infestations - manually
remove and destroy
• Large infestations of young
larvae - spray with horticultural
oil
• Large larvae - spray with a
Larvae
contact insecticide.
• Sawfly larvae are not
caterpillars; Bacillus
thuringiensis (Bt) formulations
for caterpillar control will not
kill sawflies
 22.Trichoptera
Caddisflies
• Soft bodied
• Two pairs of wings covered
with silky hairs
• Adults have long antennae
• Adults resemble small dull-
colored moths
• Larvae are usually scavengers
• Larvae build cases from
pepples or bits of sticks;
often found in the cases –
with heads only protruding
• Fish food, rarely a nuisance
23.Lepidoptera – moths
and butterflies
• Four well-developed
wings
• Wings have
overlapping scales
• Caterpillars on leaves
of plants
• Leaf feeders
• Few are beneficial
 Cutworm

Corn Earworm

Armyworm

Looper
 Clothes Moth

Banded Woolly Bear

 Hummingbird Moth Painted Lady

Western Tiger Swallowtail Anise Swallowtail

Cabbage White Common Branded Skipper

Western Sulpher Pink-spotted Hawk Moth

 Mourning Cloak European Skipper

Monarch & Caterpillar Two-tailed Swallowtail

24.Siphonaptera
Fleas
Fleas

• Small, wingless
body
• Flattened laterally
• Larvae in nests of
various animals
• Pests of animals
and man
Non-Insects
Arachnida Characteristics
Ticks, mites, spiders, scorpions

• Body divided into two parts

• Four pairs of legs
• No antennae
• No wings
Cat-faced Spider
Orders of Arachnids
• Araneae – spiders

• Acari – mites, ticks

• Scorpiones – scorpions

• Opiliones - harvestmen
 Araneae
Spiders
• Wingless and lack antennae
• Six or eight legs
• Body variable in size and
shape
• All food intake is liquid
• Webs to capture prey
• All are beneficial, few are
hazardous
 Spider Facts
• Hundreds of species in Idaho

• All are beneficial

• Almost all have venom

Black widow - female

• Hazardous spiders include

black widow and hobo spiders

• Reactions vary with individual

Black widow-male
Acari Characteristics
Ticks & Mites
• Wingless, lack antennae
• Body is flat or round
• Adults have eight legs
• Ticks only feed on blood
of animals
• Four stages; egg, larva,
nymph and adult
 Ticks
• Ectoparisite – feeds on blood
• Tick bites look like mosquito
bites, but can also bruise or
resemble a bullseye.
• Often found in tall grasses
• Can transmit human diseases:
Rocky Mountain Spotted Tick
• relapsing fever
• Lyme disease
• Rocky Mountain spotted fever
• tularemia
• equine encephalitis
• several forms of ehrlichiosis
• Can transmit livestock diseases:
babesiosis & anaplasmosis
Dog Tick
 Mites
Peacock mite
Reproductive colony of plant mites
• Diverse and successful
• Exploit an incredible array of
habitats
• Because they are small most go
totally unnoticed
• Many live freely in the soil or water,
some live as parasites on plants or
animals.
• Some of the plant pests include the
so-called Spider mites; Gall mites
• Sarcoptic Mange mites which burrow
under the skin
• Perhaps the most well known,
though, is the house dust mite
• Insects may also have parasitic
mites. (Varroa mites which attaches
to the body of the honeybee)
Scorpionida Characteristics
• Wingless • Mouthparts: chewing
• Lack Antennae • Metamorphosis:
• Bodies are broad Gradual
• Tail with a sting • Status: Beneficial
at the tip
• Front appendages
are enlarged
pinchers
• Size from 1-3
inches