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Insect Orders. Anita Neal Director/Environmental Horticulture Agent St. Lucie County Extension. Classification. Honey Bee, Apis mellifera Linnaeus Kingdom (Animal) Phylum (Arthropoda) Class (Insecta) Order (Hymenoptera) Family (Apidae) Genus (Apis)
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Insect Orders Anita Neal Director/Environmental Horticulture Agent St. Lucie County Extension
Classification • Honey Bee, Apis mellifera Linnaeus Kingdom (Animal) Phylum (Arthropoda) Class (Insecta) Order (Hymenoptera) Family (Apidae) Genus (Apis) Species (mellifera)
Collembola • Collembola are tiny, wingless insects which jump by means of a forked tail-like appendage that folds under the body. Mouthparts are formed for chewing. Bodies are elongate or globular, usually white, but some are yellowish brown or gray. • Springtails are common in moist locations, in leaf litter and under loose bark. Some species are important pests in greenhouses and mushroom cellars. Springtails are abundant at the soil surface, but are easily overlooked. • Metamorphosis is gradual (young resemble adults except for size). They are microscopic to 1/4 inch long. • Insects in this order: springtail
Thysanura • Thysanura are usually found in moist locations around houses or out-of-doors under stones, bark and boards. They are fast, run rapidly and hide in cracks and crevices. Occasionally they damage book bindings, curtains, wallpaper, etc. Silverfish can be a nuisance in houses. They are secretive and usually are most active at night. • Thysanura are wingless insects with flattened elongate bodies, long antennae and usually with three, long, tail like appendages. Mouth parts are formed for chewing. Metamorphosis is gradual (young resemble adults except for size). They are up to 3/8 inches long. • Insects in this order: silverfish, firebrats, bristletails
Ephemeroptera • Ephemeroptera are delicate insects with two pairs (rarely just one pair) of triangular shaped wings with many veins - the front pair are large and the hind pair are small. They have long front legs, that are often directed forward. The antennae are very short and there are usually three (less commonly only 2) long, tail-like appendages. The adults have non-functional mouthparts and do not feed. • Immature mayflies have elongate bodies with long legs, short antennae and usually three tails (some only have two). They have leaf like gills on the sides of the abdomen. Nymphs are found in aquatic habitats, are often found on rocks or other substrates. Both the immatures and adults are an important fish food. • Adults are common around water, especially in spring, when they may emerge in large numbers. Adult mayflies live only for one or two days. They do not feed during their adult life but mate and lay eggs during their short adult life. Mayflies are the only insect group that molts after the wings are fully developed. The first winged stage is called the subimago and this stage typically has cloudy wings. Mayflies have incomplete metamorphosis. They can be up to about 1 inch long.
Odonata • Odonata are large insects with two pairs of membranous, many-veined wings; the hind pair are as large as or larger than the front pair. Mouthparts are formed for chewing. They have large conspicuous eyes. Aquatic immature stages, called nymphs (or naiads) live in flowing or still water and are not much like the adults in appearance. Adults are common around ponds, lakes and streams. • Immature Odonata have chewing mouthparts. Naiads have elongated extensible labium with piercing jaws used to capture prey. Dragonflies naiads have elongate or flattened bodies the do not have flattened tail like projections. Damselflies naiads have elongate tails with three flattened tails. • Both the adults and the naiads feed on insects. They are beneficial, because they feed to some extent on mosquitoes and other small flies. Adult dragonflies and damselflies can hover like a helicopter or fly and dart around rapidly. Dragonflies tend to hold their wings flat out from their sides when at rest. Damselflies tend to hold their wings together over the abdomen. They have been called "mosquito hawks" and "snake doctors." • Odonata have incomplete metamorphosis. They are 1/4 inch to over 1 inch in length. • Some insects in this order: Common skimmer, dragonfly, damselfly
Phasmida • Phasmida have elongate bodies. Our species are wingless as adults. However, some tropical forms are winged and are called leaf insects. They have extremely elongate and stick-like bodies with long legs and long antennae. These insects have chewing mouthparts and feed on foliage. • They have one generation per year. Walkingsticks are slow-moving and are generally found on trees or shrubs. Walkingsticks are able to regenerate lost legs. • They have gradual metamorphosis. Large females may be over 7 inches long. • Insects in this order: walkingsticks
Orthoptera • The order Orthoptera is a large one. Orthoptera generally have two pairs of wings with many veins and range in size from 1/4 inch to 2 inches long. The front pair is usually slender and the hind pair is broad and fan-like. Wings are reduced to small pads in some grasshoppers and crickets. Mouthparts are formed for chewing. Nymphs resemble the adults. Antennae may be long and thread-like (crickets and katydids) or shorter (most grasshoppers). Front wings are generally elongate and the hind wings are usually wider. Wings may be held tent-like over the body or more flattened and overlapping (crickets). Hind legs are generally long and robust, fitted for jumping. Adults in several groups in this order never develop wings. These include such odd insects as the cave crickets. Metamorphosis is gradual. • Some members of this group are quite destructive to crops (grasshoppers). Nearly all Orthoptera in Texas are plant feeders. However, a few are actually predaceous. • Insects in this order: Differential grasshopper, banded-winged grasshopper, katydidand crickets.
Mantodea • Mantodea are rather large, elongate and slow-moving insects. Their front legs are greatly modified for grasping prey. Mantids have chewing mouthparts and unusually elongated prothorax. The wings are held over the back and overlap. Metamorphosis is gradual. • They are predaceous on a large variety of insects and other arthropods. They usually wait motionless for their prey to venture within striking distance. Mantids are well known as biological control agents. However, they do not distinguish between useful and destructive species but feed on any insects that come near. • Mantids are usually found in foliage. They may be up to 4 inches long.
Blattaria • Blattaria are cursorial (adapted for running) and move rapidly. They have flattened bodies and their head is concealed from above by their pronotum. They have two pairs of wings, but in some species the wings are greatly reduced. • Cockroaches are somewhat general feeders. They do have a preference for materials high in fats and starches. They deposit their eggs in a capsule called an ootheca. Several species invade homes where they can contaminate food. They have an unpleasant odor and can be very annoying in the home. Cockroaches go through incomplete metamorphosis. • Some insects in this order: Cockroaches
Isoptera • Isoptera are small, soft-bodied, yellowish, whitish, tan or black insects that live in colonies in wood. Colonies consist of three castes: workers, soldiers and swarmers. Workers and soldiers are wingless and never leave the colony. Swarmers, or the reproductive forms, have dark bodies and four long, veined wings. The front and hind wings of termites are nearly identical in size and venation. Termites also have beadlike antennae and thick waists which distinguish them from ants. Termites have chewing mouthparts. • Swarmers leave the colonies on sunny days to mate and search for new homes. Termites are important to man. They do millions of dollars in damage to houses each year. Termites eat wood but cannot digest the cellulose. They rely on one-celled animals (protozoans) in their intestine to digest the cellulose. • Termites undergo simple metamorphosis (egg, nymph, adult). Most termites are under 1/4 inch long. • Insects in this order: Drywood termites and subterranean termites
Drywood Termite Pellets
Dermaptera • Dermaptera are medium size insects usually with four wings. The front pair of wings is short, leathery and meet down the center of the back, which leaves most of the abdomen exposed. The hind wings are folded under these. A pair on non-poisonous pinchers are found at the end of the abdomen. The pinchers are not segmented but consist of a single piece. The pinchers often are asymmetric, i.e., the right and left sides are shaped differently. They have chewing mouthparts. • Usually earwigs are found outdoors hiding under leaves, boards or in cracks during the day. Earwigs can be destructive in greenhouses and rarely in field crops. They are a nuisance when they enter homes. They release a bad smelling substance when disturbed. Some earwigs provide some parental care for the young. • Earwigs undergo simple metamorphosis. Most earwigs are about 1/2 - 3/4 inch in length as adults. • Insects in this order: earwig
Plecoptera • Adult stoneflies have two pairs of wings which are held together flat and extend beyond the abdomen. The hind wings are much larger than the front and are folded fan-like under the front wing. Stoneflies have long antennae and two long appendages (cerci) at the end of the abdomen. Adults and nymphs (or naiads) have chewing mouthparts. • Nymphs have elongate bodies with long legs and long antennae. They usually have only two tails on the end of the abdomen. The gills of stoneflies are found on the thorax and head. Usually the gills are feathery or branched fleshy extensions often under the base of the legs. They are 1/2 to one inch in length and undergo incomplete metamorphosis.
Psocoptera • Psocoptera are tiny insects that have either four wings or none at all. Wings are held tent-like over the back of the body. They generally have long antennae and soft bodies. They have chewing mouthparts. Booklice are found around old books, papers and in damp, dark rooms. Those with wings are called psocids (pronounced "so-sids"). • Most live outdoors and are found resting in soil litter, around vegetation or on stones, logs and fences. Rather uncommon but may be locally abundant. Some booklice feed on stored grains while others are library pests. • They undergo gradual metamorphosis with the life stages are egg, nymph and adult. They range in size from microscopic to 1/4-inch.
Phthiraptera • Phthiraptera are divided into the chewing lice (Mallophaga) and sucking lice (Anoplura). • These insects are wingless parasites that live on most birds and mammals. The chewing lice feed on bits of hair, feathers or skin of the host. The sucking lice feed mainly on blood. Lice deposit their eggs on the hair or feathers of the host. These insects are irritating pests that can be carriers of disease. Only the sucking lice contain members that attack humans. Phthiraptera undergo simple metamorphosis. • Suborder Mallophaga (chewing lice) • The chewing lice are sometimes consisted to be two suborders, the Amblycera and Ischnocera. They are small, flat, wingless, parasitic insects with mouth parts formed for chewing. Legs and antennae are short. Immature stages resemble the adults except for size. These insects feed upon feathers of birds or on hair and skin scales of other animals. They are important pests of domestic fowl and animals, but they do not live on man. About 1/6 to 3/16 inch long when mature. The chicken head louse, Cuclotogasterheterographus (Nitzsh) (Phthiraptera; Ischnocera: Philopteridae) is an example. • Suborder Anoplura (sucking lice) • Anoplura are small, flat, wingless, parasitic insects with mouthparts formed for piercing and sucking. Legs and antennae are short. Immature stages resemble the adults. These insects are found commonly on domestic animals, but not on birds. The human louse belongs to this suborder. They feed by sucking blood and are important pests of domestic animals and man. The human body louse has been responsible for millions of human deaths through the centuries. They spread the organism causing epidemic typhus from one person to another. The hog louse, Haematopinussuis (Linnaeus) (Phthiraptera; Anoplura: Haematopinidae) is an example.
Hemiptera (true bugs) • Hemiptera usually have four wings folded flat over the body. There is often a visible triangle at the center of the back that the wing bases do not cover called the scrutellum. The front pair are thickened and leathery at the base with membranous tips or ends. Mouthparts are formed for piercing and sucking and the beak arises from the front part of the head. • They are found on plants and animals, or in water. Some true bugs cause considerable plant damage by their feeding. Some are beneficial because they prey on other insects. A few bite humans on occasion. • Metamorphosis is gradual, with immatures usually quite like the adults but wingless. Most are under 1/2-inch long but some forms especially aquatic ones may be over 2 inches long. • Insects in this order are: A giant water bug, tarnished plant bug, chinch bug, stinkbug, bedbug, assassin bug, milkweed bug.
Leaffooted Bug Nymph
Assassin Bugs Nymphs
Homoptera • Homoptera may or may not have wings. All have sucking mouthparts. Wings, when present, are four in number and are held roof-like over the body and are usually membranous. Cicadas and leafhoppers all have wings. Aphids may or may not have wings and are small, typically with a pair of projections (cornicles) arising from the fifth or sixth abdominal segment. Scale insects are wingless; live on branches, roots and leaves; and move around little, if any, after beginning to feed. The body is covered with a hard or waxy covering. Mealybugs are usually wingless; whitish or gray in color; covered with a waxy substance; and move slowly. • All Homoptera feed on plants. Mouthparts are formed for piercing and sucking and the beak arises from the hind part of the head. Leafhoppers, aphids, etc. come in many shapes and sizes. Some species in the order Homoptera give birth to living young. • Metamorphosis is generally considered to be gradual but it is modified in whiteflies and some other Homoptera. Most forms are small or microscopic, cicadas are nearly 3/4-inch long. • Insects in this order are: Cicadas, aphids, scale, leafhoppers and whitefly.
