WSU Pest Management Life Cycle Stages Flashcards

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards covering the life cycle stages and specific characteristics of various pests as defined by WSU Pest Management study materials.

Complete Metamorphosis

A life cycle consisting of four distinct stages: Egg $\rightarrow$ Larva $\rightarrow$ Pupa $\rightarrow$ Adult, where the larva looks completely different from the adult.

Simple (Incomplete) Metamorphosis

A life cycle consisting of three stages: Egg $\rightarrow$ Nymph $\rightarrow$ Adult, where the nymph resembles a smaller version of the adult and there is no pupal stage.

No True Metamorphosis (Ametabolous)

A life cycle consisting of Egg $\rightarrow$ Juvenile $\rightarrow$ Adult, where juveniles look identical to adults and adults continue to molt even after reaching sexual maturity.

Lyctids (True Powderpost Beetles)

Beetles with a 1-year cycle (can extend to $1-2$ years) featuring an egg stage of $1-3$ weeks, a larval stage of $8-10$ months, and a pupal stage of approximately $3$ weeks.

Golden Buprestid (Flatheaded Borer)

A beetle whose larvae live for $2-4$ years, and sometimes up to $15-20$ years in wood, before pupating in an oval cell near the wood surface.

Indianmeal Moth

A member of the Order Lepidoptera whose life cycle takes $6-8$ weeks in warm weather, involving a dirty white or greenish larva ($\sim 1/2\,in$) and a light brown pupa in a silken cocoon.

Mosquito Larva and Pupa

The aquatic stages of a mosquito; the larva is known as a "wiggler" (lasting a few days) and the pupa is known as a "tumbler" (lasting a few hours).

Yellowjackets

Insects that form annual colonies where the queen feeds the larvae for $18-20$ days, which luego become small infertile female workers.

Mud Daubers

Wasps that lay eggs on paralyzed spiders in mud cells; the larvae feed on the spiders and pupate for approximately $2$ weeks.

Cat/Dog Flea Larvae

Wormlike organisms (~$3/16\,in$) that feed on organic debris; notably, they cannot pierce the skin of humans or pets.

German Cockroach

The fastest reproducing cockroach in Washington, carrying an egg case with $30-48$ eggs; nymphs reach adulthood in $1.5-4$ months.

Cockroach Nymphs

The immature stage of cockroaches that undergo $5-13$ molts; they possess undeveloped wings and may differ in color from adults.

Psocids (Book Lice)

Insects that undergo simple metamorphosis, are found in damp areas, and feed primarily on mold.

Silverfish & Firebrats

Ametabolous insects with three long tail-like appendages that continue to molt throughout their lives.

Hobo Spider (Tegenaria agrestis)

An arachnid with a typical 2-year life cycle that molts approximately $10$ times before reaching sexual maturity.

Hard Ticks (Ixodidae)

Arachnids that require three separate blood meals to complete a life cycle (usually $2-3$ years), progressing through egg, 6-legged larva, 8-legged nymph, and 8-legged adult stages.

Vejovis boreas

The Washington scorpion, which is born live or hatches on the mother's back, grows to approximately $2\,inches$ through a series of molts (instars), and has no true metamorphosis.

Nits

Lice eggs that are glued to hair or clothing using an insoluble cement; they typically hatch in about $1$ week.

Vertebrate Life Cycle

A process involving no metamorphosis, where animals (such as mice, rats, or birds) are born live or hatched and simply grow to adult size.

Flea Pupa

The life stage contained in a silken cocoon for $7-14$ days that waits for a signal from a host before emerging as an adult.