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Introduction to Insects The Study of Insects • Known as entomology • Entomologists have described and classified more than 900,000 insect species. • Entomologists discover from 7,000 to 10,000 new species of insects each year. Insect Classification • Kingdom: Animalia • Phylum: Arthropoda • Class: Insecta • Orders (know these): Coleoptera, Diptera, Hemiptera, Homoptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera, Orthoptera, Odonata Insect Anatomy • A hard exoskeleton protects a soft interior. • Divided into head, thorax, abdomen • Most have wings of some type • No Lungs: breathes through spiracles and trachea • insect anatomy web page Mouth Parts • Chewing (beetles) • Sucking (adult butterflies) • Piercing (true bugs) • Lapping (fly) Insect Growth • The exoskeleton limits the potential size of insects, but provides valuable protection. • To grow and become an adult, young insects shed or molt their exoskeleton. Molting • A new, flexible exoskeleton forms beneath the old exoskeleton. • By taking in extra air, the insect expands itself and splits the old skin. • The new, soft exoskeleton starts to harden in minutes. • Once an insect becomes an adult it stops growing. Life Cycles: Metamorphosis • Complete Metamorphosis – For butterflies, the caterpillar is very different from the adult. • Incomplete Metamorphosis – In grasshoppers, the young resemble the adults. The younger stages are called nymphs. • No Metamorphosis – The young are identical to adults, except for gonads. Complete Metamorphosis egg adult larva pupa Incomplete Metamorphosis egg adult nymph bigger nymph