Insect Flight Adaptations Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards based on lecture notes.

Tracheal System

System for O2/CO2 delivery in land arthropods.

Hemolymph

Open circulatory system in insects, transporting nutrients and waste.

Malpighian Tubules

Filter non-gaseous waste from hemolymph in insects.

Ingestion, storage, and grinding

The insect foregut is responsible for what functions?

Biochemical breakdown and nutrient absorption

Insect midgut's primary role.

Absorption of water, salts, and minerals

Insect hindgut's primary functions.

Protocerebrum

Insect brain region that processes visual information.

Mushroom Bodies

Insect brain region associated with learning and memory.

Deutocerebrum

Insect brain region processing sensory information from antennae.

Tritocerebrum

Insect brain region linking the brain to the ventral nerve cord.

Ganglia

Decentralized nervous system units in insects.

Cochineal

Chemical that makes beetle juice (red dye, carmine).

Physiological Modifications

Adaptations that support flight in insects.

Spiracles

Openings in the exoskeleton that allow air to enter the tracheal system.

Hemocytes

Insect blood cells; phagocytes.

Aphagous

Term for insects with a reduced or absent digestive system as adults.

Thoracic Ganglia

Ventral nerve cord ganglia location responsible for wings and legs.

Abdominal Ganglia

Ventral nerve cord ganglia location responsible for abdominal muscles.

Caudal Ganglia

Ventral nerve cord ganglia location responsible for the anus.

Ovoviviparity

mode of reproduction in which:

• Eggs develop inside the parent’s body, but

• The embryos get nourishment from the egg yolk (not directly from the parent), and

• Young are born live, as the eggs hatch inside the parent or immediately after being laid.

Non-myelinated

A characteristic of insect neurons.

Deutocerebrum

Process sensory information collected by the antennae

Insect flight muscles

Move very fast with very efficient O2 delivery.

Bacillus thuringiensis

bacterium widely used in agriculture and pest control.

Ingestion by Insect: The insect larva eats ___ spores or Cry toxins.

• Activation in Gut: In the insect’s alkaline midgut, the Cry proteins become active toxins.

• Binding to Gut Cells: These toxins bind to specific receptors in the insect's gut lining.

• Cell Lysis: Pores form in the gut membrane, causing cell rupture, sepsis, and death.

Deutocerebrum

Process sensory information collected by the antennae