Litinsects

Litinsects #60: Cockroaches Cockroaches belong to the order BLATTODEA, which is derived from the Greek word “blatta” meaning cockroach. Did you know that the Blattodea contains cockroaches AND termites? That’s right; termites are actually considered a specialized group of cockroaches! They used to be classified in an entirely different order of insects but recent genetic studies found a closer relation to cockroaches than previously thought. -Roaches are characterized by their broad, flat bodies. They have long antennae and generalized chewing mouthparts. In contrast to many other insects, which have 3, cockroaches have only 2 ocelli (or simple eyes) -Most people consider roaches to be disgusting, disease-spreading pests. But of 4,500 species, only 30 live in human habitats and are considered pests -The common name is derived from the Spanish word for the insect, “cucaracha” -Cockroaches can be found in a wide variety of habitats around the world. Many live in the tropics but...

Litinsects #59: Gynandromorphs Ok people, pretty sure I’m gonna blow your minds with this one. No, these pictures are not some freakish cut-and-paste Frankenstein experiments. These animals are absolutely real and extremely rare GYNANDROMORPHS. Common blue gynandromorph (left male, right female) © Burkhard Hinnersmann This word comes from the Greek “gyne” for female, “andro” for male, and “morph” for form... meaning that these individuals contain BOTH MALE AND FEMALE tissues! Firstly, this is not the same thing as a hermaphrodite, which is an organism that contains both types of gonads or can create both sperm and eggs. Gynandromorphs literally have some body parts that are genetically female and others that are genetically male. So I’m sure you’re asking... how?! Malaysian stick insect (left male, right female) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Heteropteryx_dilatata_0034b_L.D.jpg Many different genetic systems exist in the animal kingdom. In humans XX codes for female and ...

Litinsects #57: Fireflies ©  Radim Schreiber You may know them as fireflies, lightning bugs, or glowworms depending on where you grew up…  these glowing bugs are actually neither flies, nor bugs, nor worms but beetles. They are a special group known for their BIOLUMINESCENCE. So how does that work? Bioluminescence is light produced by an organism through a chemical reaction. In some animals light is produced by bacterial symbionts, in others the light is produced by the organisms themselves, as is the case with fireflies. (Side note: this is different than biofluorescence, which is the absorption and re-emission of certain wavelengths but it doesn’t involve a chemical reaction.) Fireflies have a LIGHT ORGAN in their lower abdomen in which a special reaction takes place; it produces light but no heat (thus often called “cold light”). A compound called LUCIFERIN, coming from the Latin word for „light-bearing“ (also the same etymology for the name Lucifer) is contained in t...

Litinsects #56: Fleas If you have pets, you may have already recognized this... It’s a flea! Fleas are wingless external parasites that feed on the blood of mammals and birds. They make up the order SIPHONAPTERA, from the Greek „siphon“ meaning “tube/pipe” and „aptera“ meaning “wingless” (I love it, another perfectly fitting name!) -Adaptations to the parasitic lifestyle include piercing/sucking mouthparts, claws to hold on to their hosts, and LATERALLY FLATTENED bodies (narrow when viewed from above), which makes it easier to move through host fur or feathers. They are also covered in tiny backwards-pointing hairs, which help anchor them to a host -Though they have no wings, fleas are able to jump a distance of 50-200x their body length, which is how they get onto a host. The jump is faster than any muscle is capable of contracting. Instead, energy is stored in an elastic pad of protein called RESILIN. The pad is compressed and held in place by a tendon and can be released to ra...

Litinsects #55: Praying Mantis Here’s one you’ll probably recognize immediately: the praying mantis. These insects belong to the order MANTODEA and are most closely related to termites and cockroaches. And there are so many good fun facts to share about them so I will get right into it! All mantises are characterized by their triangular heads, bulging compound eyes, and instantly recognizable RAPTORIAL FORELEGS, which are adapted for catching and gripping prey Mantises are masters of camouflage, which not only protects them from predators but also allows them to avoid detection by prey. Flower mantises are camouflaged SO well to that they can wait undetected on a flower for an unsuspecting pollinator to come right to them. This is known as AGGRESSIVE MIMICRY  Most mantises are AMBUSH PREDATORS and rely heavily on sight to locate prey, meaning they are often diurnal. They will eat pretty much any type of insect and arthropod and have even been observed eating small birds and liz...

Litinsects #53: Waggle Dance Communication in the animal kingdom comes in many forms... even dance! And honey bees are quite the dancers. As you know, worker bees spend much of their time visiting flowers to forage (see Post #36 for a recap on honey). When a scout finds a particularly good patch of flowers (or even another resource like potential nesting site), she returns to the hive to recruit more workers to fly to the resource. In the case of a food source, she first regurgitates and distributes some of the nectar she has collected in order to grab the attention of her hive-mates. And then she tells them exactly where they can find more. Enter the WAGGLE DANCE. This fascinating form of communication tells other bees in which direction and exactly how far to fly to find a resource. The waggle refers to the motion of the performer’s abdomen, which wiggles very quickly side to side. Here’s a play by play: While waggling, the bee moves forward in a straight line, called the wagg...

Litinsects #52: Bed bugs I now present every traveler’s worst nightmare... Bed bugs are true bugs from the order HEMIPTERA. They undergo incomplete metamorphosis through multiple nymphal stages and have piercing/sucking mouthparts.  ©   Piotr Naskrecki Bed bugs are OBLIGATORY HEMATOPHAGOUS, coming from the Greek „haima“ for “blood” and „phagein“ for “to eat”, meaning they eat blood and in fact can’t survive on anything else! Their saliva contains anticoagulants and painkillers, which is why you are not likely to be woken up by bed bug while they bite you While the “bug” part of the name is accurate (they are true bugs), the “bed” part is not necessarily true, as they may live in furniture as well Each immature stage requires a blood meal within a few days of molting in order to develop into the next stage, or else it starves. But adults can go up to six months without feeding! Bed bugs use carbon dioxide in exhaled breath to find their hosts. They are also attracted to bod...

Litinsects #51: Mayflies Mayflies are aquatic freshwater insects and belong to one of the most primitive winged insect lineages! First off, what’s in a name? Mayflies’ common name comes from the fact that some species start “hatching” from the water in May. But their scientific name is much more interesting and accurate; this order is named EPHEMEROPTERA from the Greek “ephemera” for “lasting one day / temporary” and “pteron” for “wing”. A more fitting name would be dayfly, considering their adult lifespan... Most live less than 24 hours after emerging, the shortest adult lifespan of any insect! -Mayflies have triangular-shaped wings that are held upright over their bodies when at rest (sort of like a butterfly) and have three long tail-like filaments. These characteristics, both of which make them easily recognizable, are probably traits that were present in the most primitive flying insects -They are HEMIMETABOLOUS insects, meaning they go through incomplete metamorphosis, with multi...

Litinsects #44: Intro to Mites If you were to ask me which group of creepy-crawlies gets the worst reputation due to the lifestyles of just a portion of its members, I would absolutely say the mites. People only seem to know about the “bad” mites: ticks, dust mites, those little mites that live on your face (what’s that, you don’t know about face mites yet? Well I can’t wait to tell you about them)... But the fact is, the majority of mite species are ones that are harmless to humans, ones you will probably never hear about and never encounter even though there are an unfathomable number of these crazy-looking creatures all around us. Welcome to my MONTH OF MITES! Even though they’re not insects, I still think they’re super cool and would love to spread some fun facts, even about species that we may not like very much. <http://idtools.org/id/mites/invasive_mite/Invasive_Mite_Identification/key/Major_Mite_taxa/Media/Html/0001About.htm>   First off, let’s get to kno...

Litinsects #40: Millipedes   The level of disgust for an arthropod often increases proportionately with the number of legs it has. Well I’m here to tell you: you don’t really need to fear millipedes! What is a millipede? Millipedes and centipedes (more on them to come) both belong to a group of arthropods called the MYRIAPODA. Why? Because they have a myriad of feet! Myriapoda are one of the four arthropod groups, the others being arachnids, crustaceans, and hexapods (aka insects). Millipedes are known as DIPLOPODA from the Greek “diploos” meaning double and “pod” meaning foot. Have a look at the close-up photo and see if you can guess why... With the exception of the first four body segments behind the head, every other segment of a millipede is actually two fused segments, known as a DIPLOSEGMENT, so it appears as though each one has TWO legs attached rather than one, hence the name!   Millipedes are some of the very earliest animals to colonize land, around 450 mill...

© Gail Sumway  Litinsects #39: Leaf cutter ants You’ve likely seen them in nature documentaries; countless individuals on a trail with abstract leaf cut-outs on their backs... these are LEAF CUTTER ANTS. They can carry impressively heavy loads on their backs, up to 20 times their body weight. But have you ever wondered what they do with all these leaves that they carry back to their nests? You might assume that they eat them but they don’t! What they actually do is way cooler than that. Leaf cutter ants participate in a MUTUALISTIC SYMBIOSIS with fungi, a close relationship that benefits all parties. Ants cultivate underground fungus gardens in their nests and it’s actually the fungi that eat the leaves as they decompose. The fungus in turn serves as food for the ant colony! Because the fungus needs the ants to stay alive, it is a mutually beneficial relationship. Ants actively groom the gardens by removing parasites and even secrete anti-microbial substances to prevent growth ...

Harvestman (aka daddy longlegs) Mite Spider   Litinsects #38: Arachnids Today we are taking a little excursion outside the world of insects into a neighboring class of arthropods, the ARACHNIDS. Most people think spiders when they hear arachnids but the group includes so much more than that! In addition to spiders , the arachnids consist of mites and ticks, scorpions , pseudoscorpions, tailless whip scorpions, and harvestmen (aka daddy longlegs which are NOT actually spiders!). The closest relatives of arachnids are horseshoe crabs Like insects (and all other arthropods), arachnids have jointed appendages and a hard exoskeleton and grow by molting Arachnids have neither wings nor antennae. They possess only simple and no compound eyes Unlike insects, which have 3 body segments (head, thorax, and abdomen) arachnids generally have two body sections, the PROSOMA, aka head, and the OPISTHOSOMA, aka abdomen (but the two may be fused into one in some groups) Arachnids are easily recogniz...