Insect Taxonomic Diversity BY TAYLOR EPKINS Insect Orders

Insect Taxonomic Diversity BY: TAYLOR EPKINS

Insect Orders Ephemeroptera Odonota Blattaria Isoptera Dermatptera Orthoptera Phasmida Hemiptera Coleoptera Lepidoptera Diptera Lepidoptera Siphonoptera Hymenoptera

EPHEMEROPTERA Mayflies or shadflies are insects belonging to the order Ephemeroptera. They have been placed into an ancient group of insects termed the Palaeoptera, which also contains dragonflies and damselflies.

ODONATA Both dragonflies and damselflies belong to the Odonata, which is a subgroup of insects, which in turn is a group of uniramian arthropods. While both dragonflies and damselflies belong to the Odonata and share many common features, then are a number of noticeable differences as well.

BLATTARIA Cockroaches are mostly nocturnal insect, with biting mouthparts and legs that are adapted for swift running. The body is oval and dorsoventrally flattened, allowing the animals to hide in narrow spaces, for example under bark or in crevices of trees and rocks. The head is usually hidden beneath the pronotal shield, and there is a pair of short cerci at the end of the abdomen. In winged species, the forewings (tegmina) are leathery and protect the delicate hindwings.

ISOPTERA Isoptera consists of over 2600 species (mostly tropical). Termites are the oldest social insect group with complex societies dating back at least to the early Cretaceous (140 Mya). Only 12 species occur in Europe. Recent studies have shown that Isoptera are basically social cockroaches forming a monophyletic clade within the Blattodea, most likely the sister group of the Cryptocercidae (woodroaches) (Inward et al. 2007). Termites are the only hemimetabolous insects that exhibit true social behavior. They build large nests housing an entire colony. These colonies contain adult reproductives (one queen and one king) plus hundreds or thousands of immatures that serve as workers and soldiers. Termites are important decomposer animals in lowland tropical ecosystems. They mostly feed on dead plant material and are able to digest cellulose with the help of symbiotic gut symbionts.

DERMATPTERA Earwigs make up the insect order Dermaptera and are found throughout the Americas, Africa, Eurasia, Australia and New Zealand. With about 2, 000 species in 12 families, they are one of the smaller insect orders.

ORTHOPTERA The insect order Orthoptera includes familiar insects like grasshoppers, locusts, crickets, and katydids. The members of this group are readily identified by their strong hind legs which are modified for jumping. Orthopterans are well known for their ability to produce sound. Crickets and katydids sing by rubbing their front wings together; while grasshoppers and locusts scrape their legs against their forewings to produce their songs.

PHASMIDA Phasmatodea (also known as Phasmida) comprises 3000 species worldwide with only 15 species known in Europe. Stick-insects are found in nearly all temperate and tropical ecosystems. Species are mostly nocturnal and phytophagous. Phasmatodea bears several common morphological characters that clearly defi ne the order: an emarginated labrum, a pair of exocrine glands located inside the prothorax, and a thorax fused with the first abdominal sternum. Phasmids undergo an incomplete metamorphosis (four to eight instars), with the young nymphs resembling miniature, albeit wingless, adults.

HEMIPTERA Hemiptera is an order of insects most often known as the true bugs, comprising around 50, 000– 80, 000 species of cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, shield bugs, and others. The true bugs have forewings that are hardened at the base and membranous at the tips. They sit flat over the abdomen hiding the membranous hind wings. The head and proboscis can flex forward.

COLEOPTERA The name Coleoptera, derived from the Greek words "koleos" meaning sheath and "ptera" meaning wings, refers to the modified front wings which serve as protective covers for the membranous hind wings. The Coleoptera order of insects is commonly called beetles

LEPIDOPTERA Lepidoptera is a large order of insects that includes moths and butterflies. It is one of the most widespread and widely recognizable insect orders in the world The name Lepidoptera, derived from the Greek words "lepido" for scale and "ptera" for wings, refers to the flattened hairs (scales) that cover the body and wings of most adults.

DIPTERA True flies are insects of the order Diptera. Their most obvious distinction from other orders of insects is that a typical fly possesses a pair of flight wings on the mesothorax and a pair of halters The name Diptera, derived from the Greek words "di" meaning two and "ptera" meaning wings, refers to the fact that true flies have only a single pair of wings.

SIPHONOPTERA Fleas are the insects forming the order Siphonaptera. They are wingless, with mouthparts adapted for piercing skin and sucking blood. Fleas are external parasites, living by hematophagy off the blood of mammals and birds. The name Siphonaptera is derived from the Greek words "siphon" meaning a tube or pipe and "aptera" meaning wingless. This is an appropriate appellation for these secondarily wingless insects whose mouthparts are adapted for piercing skin and sucking blood.

HYMENOPTERA The Hymenoptera are one of the largest orders of insects, comprising the sawflies, wasps, bees and ants. Over 150, 000 species are recognized, with many more remaining to be described The name Hymenoptera is derived from the Greek words "hymen" meaning membrane and "ptera" meaning wings.

MANTODEA Mantodea is an order of insects that contains over 2, 400 species and about 430 genera in 15 families worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats. Most of the species are in the family Mantidae. The name Mantodea is derived from "mantis", the Greek word for these insects.

PLECOPTERA The Plecoptera are an order of insects, commonly known as stoneflies. Some 3, 500 species are described worldwide, with new species still being discovered. Stoneflies are found worldwide, except Antarctica. The name Plecoptera, derived from the Greek "pleco" meaning folded and "ptera" meaning wing, refers to the pleated hind wings which fold under the front wings when the insect is at rest.

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