Entomology EXAM Term Review – 89 Key Terms

Acrididae

A family of grasshoppers, including locusts. Known for their powerful hind legs for jumping and potential to swarm.

Anoplura

Sucking lice that are ectoparasitic on mammals, feeding on blood. Includes head and body lice.

Ant-hemipteran mutualism

A mutualistic relationship where ants protect aphids or scale insects in exchange for honeydew.

Antlion

Predatory larvae of the family Myrmeleontidae that dig pits to trap insects, particularly ants.

Aphididae

A family of sap-sucking insects (aphids) that reproduce rapidly and can transmit plant diseases.

Beetles vectoring plant diseases

Certain beetles (e.g., cucumber beetles) spread plant pathogens, such as bacterial wilt.

Bombardier beetle

Beetles that eject hot, noxious chemicals from their abdomen to deter predators.

Buprestidae

Also known as metallic wood-boring beetles or jewel beetles; larvae bore into trees.

Capitulum

A bulb-like structure at the end of a seed or egg that mimics food to attract dispersers (e.g., ants).

Carrion beetles

Beetles in the family Silphidae that feed on decomposing animal tissue and assist in forensic studies.

Chagas disease

A disease caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi, transmitted by kissing bugs (Triatominae).

Characteristics of thrips

Small, slender insects with fringed wings. Many are plant feeders; some transmit viruses.

Chewing lice vs. sucking lice

Chewing lice (Mallophaga) feed on skin/debris and have wide heads; sucking lice (Anoplura) feed on blood and have narrow heads.

Cicadellidae

Leafhoppers; small, jumping insects that feed on plant sap and can transmit plant pathogens.

Cicadidae

Cicadas; known for their loud mating calls, they have long life cycles and emerge in synchronized broods.

Coccinellidae

Ladybird beetles (ladybugs); beneficial predators of aphids and other pests.

Collembola

Springtails; primitive, wingless hexapods found in moist environments, using a furcula to jump.

Common cockroach pests

Includes species like the German cockroach and American cockroach; household pests with rapid reproduction.

Convergent evolution

Independent evolution of similar traits in unrelated groups due to similar environmental pressures.

Corixidae

Water boatmen; aquatic insects with paddle-like hind legs, usually harmless and feed on algae.

Courtship behaviors in hexapods

Behaviors include pheromone release, sound production, or visual displays to attract mates.

Dactylopiidae

Family of scale insects that includes cochineal, used historically for red dye production.

Darkling beetle

Tenebrionidae; often found in arid environments, includes pests like the mealworm beetle.

Dermaptera

Order of insects known as earwigs, characterized by forceps-like cerci and nocturnal habits.

Diplura

Primitive hexapods with elongated bodies and two cerci at the rear, found in soil or leaf litter.

Diving beetle

Family Dytiscidae; aquatic predators with natatorial legs and air bubbles for respiration.

Dobsonflies

Insects of the order Megaloptera; large larvae (hellgrammites) are aquatic and predatory.

Dragonflies vs. damselflies

Dragonflies have broader bodies and hold wings open; damselflies are slender and fold wings at rest.

Drywood termites vs. subterranean termites

Drywood termites live in dry wood; subterranean termites require moist soil and build mud tubes.

Dung beetles

Beetles that roll, bury, or dwell in dung; contribute to nutrient recycling and waste decomposition.

Elateridae

Click beetles; known for clicking sound and ability to flip into the air when on their back.

Elytra

Hardened forewings of beetles that protect the hindwings and abdomen.

Entognatha

A class of primitive hexapods (includes Collembola, Protura, Diplura) with internalized mouthparts.

Ephemeroptera

Mayflies; aquatic insects with short adult lives and a unique subimago stage.

Epidemic typhus fever

Disease caused by Rickettsia prowazekii, transmitted by body lice during poor hygiene conditions.

Feeding habit of neuropterans

Predaceous larvae and adults; many feed on soft-bodied pests like aphids.

Filter chamber

Specialized digestive organ in sap-feeding insects that helps concentrate nutrients and excrete water.

Furcula

Forked appendage used by Collembola (springtails) to leap into the air for escape.

Gregarious vs. solitary phases in locusts

Locusts can switch from solitary to gregarious, swarming behavior based on environmental cues.

Gryllidae

Crickets; known for chirping sounds produced by stridulation and long antennae.

Head lice vs. body lice

Head lice live on the scalp; body lice live in clothing and can transmit diseases.

Hemimetabolous development

Incomplete metamorphosis: egg → nymph → adult; nymphs resemble adults.

Hemipteran feeding habit

Primarily fluid feeders, extracting sap or animal fluids using piercing-sucking mouthparts.

Hemipteran mouthparts

Modified for piercing and sucking; includes a beak-like structure (rostrum).

Heteroptera mouthpart

Piercing-sucking mouthparts originating from the front of the head; includes true bugs.

Holometabolous development

Complete metamorphosis: egg → larva → pupa → adult; major form change between stages.

Honeydew

Sugary waste excreted by sap-feeding insects like aphids, often collected by ants.

How do insects breathe underwater

Using air bubbles, plastrons, or siphons to extract oxygen from water.

Hydrogen peroxide

One of the reactive chemicals used by bombardier beetles in their explosive defense reaction.

Hydroquinone

Chemical stored by bombardier beetles that reacts with hydrogen peroxide to produce heat and gas.

Isoptera

Former name for termites; now grouped with cockroaches in Blattodea.

Japanese beetle

Invasive scarab beetle in North America that feeds on over 300 plant species.

Kissing bug

Common name for Triatominae; blood-feeding bugs that transmit Chagas disease.

Lacewings

Neuropteran insects with delicate wings and predaceous larvae known as 'aphid lions'.

Lampyridae

Fireflies or lightning bugs; beetles capable of producing light via bioluminescence.

Luminescent mechanism in fireflies

Light is produced via reaction of luciferin with oxygen and ATP in the presence of luciferase enzyme.

Mallophaga characteristics

Chewing lice; have broad heads and feed on feathers, skin, or secretions.

Mantodea

Order of predatory insects known as mantids; have raptorial forelegs for catching prey.

Maternal care of eggs in earwigs

Earwig mothers guard and clean their eggs, protecting them from predators and fungi.

Mecoptera

Order including scorpionflies; characterized by elongated faces and some with curved genitalia.

Neuroptera

Order including lacewings, antlions; characterized by net-veined wings and predatory larvae.

Odonata

Order including dragonflies and damselflies; aquatic larvae and aerial adult predators.

Pheromone use in beetles

Used for attracting mates, aggregating, or marking resources.

Phthiraptera

Order of lice; wingless ectoparasites on birds and mammals.

Plecoptera habitat

Stoneflies; nymphs are aquatic and prefer clean, oxygen-rich streams.

Potato beetle

Colorado potato beetle; major pest of potato crops with high pesticide resistance.

Protura

Small, eyeless, soil-dwelling hexapods with front legs used for sensory functions.

Psocodea

Order including booklice and parasitic lice; diverse in form and lifestyle.

Pyrophilous

Attracted to fire or recently burned areas; some beetles use heat sensors to locate sites for laying eggs.

Scansorial leg

Adapted for climbing; seen in lice and other ectoparasites.

Scarabaeoidea

Superfamily of beetles including dung beetles, scarabs, and June beetles.

Scorpionflies

Mecopterans with elongated faces and some males with scorpion-like genitalia.

Sound perception / production in insects

Insects detect sound via tympanal organs and produce it via stridulation or tymbals.

Stridulation in Orthoptera

Sound production by rubbing body parts together, such as wings or legs in crickets and grasshoppers.

Subimago

Unique to mayflies; a winged but sexually immature stage before adult (imago).

Tettigoniidae

Katydids or bush crickets; have long antennae and often mimic leaves.

Thysanoptera

Order of thrips; small insects with fringed wings and asymmetrical mouthparts.

Tiger beetles

Fast, agile beetles with large eyes and strong mandibles. Larvae ambush prey from burrows.

Trichoptera

Caddisflies; aquatic larvae that construct protective cases from silk and debris.

True bugs

Members of the suborder Heteroptera, characterized by hemelytra and piercing-sucking mouthparts.

Tympanal organs of insects

Hearing organs found on legs, thorax, or abdomen, detecting vibrations or sound.

Tymbals in cicada

Ribbed membranes used by male cicadas to produce loud mating calls.

Weevils

Beetles in Curculionidae; recognized by their elongated snouts and plant-feeding habits.

Whirligig beetle

Aquatic beetles that spin on water surfaces; have divided eyes for seeing above and below water.

Wood boring beetles

Includes families like Buprestidae and Cerambycidae; larvae bore into and damage wood.