|
|
Narrative
Insects (Class Insecta) are the most successful animals on Earth if success is measured by the number of species or the total number of living organisms. This class contains more than a million species, of which North America has approximately 100,000. (Recent estimates place the number of worldwide species at four to six million.)
Insects have an exoskeleton. The body is divided into three parts. The foremost part, the head, usually bears two antennae. The middle part, the thorax, has six legs and usually four wings. The last part, the abdomen, is used for breathing and reproduction.
Although different taxonomists divide the insects differently, about thirty-five different orders are included in most of the systems.
The following abbreviated list identifies some common orders of the many different orders of insects discussed herein:
Odonata: - Dragon and Damsel Flies
Orthoptera: - Grasshoppers and Mantids
Homoptera: - Cicadas and Misc. Hoppers
Diptera: - Flies and Mosquitoes
Hymenoptera: - Ants, Wasps, and Bees
Lepidoptera: - Butterflies and Moths
Coleoptera: - Beetles
Taxonomy
|
|
Latin
|
English
|
|
Kingdom
|
Animalia
|
Animal
|
|
Phylum
|
Arthropoda
|
Jointed Legged Animals
|
|
Class
|
Insecta
|
Insects
|
|
Order
|
|
|
|
Family
|
|
|
|
SubFamily
|
|
|
References
| Title | Author | Comments |
| The Pictorial Encyclopedia of Insects | Stanek, V.J. | This 543 page book covers the various orders and families of insects. Many interesting and exotic species are pictured, and many of the pictures are in color. This is a very fine book. |
| A Field Guide to the Insects | Borror, Donald J. | This book provides an excellent overview of the insects of America north of Mexico. Butterflies, moths, beetles, and other orders of insects are covered. |
| Insects of Hong Kong | Hill, D.S. | This 500 page black and white book gives a good overview of the insects of Hong Kong, China. With many line drawings and some photographs, one should be able to identify the common dragonflies, grasshopper, butterflies, and moths of the area. |
| Insects of the World | Linsenmaier, Walter | This large format 390 page book is an excellent overview of the beautiful and interesting insects of the world. With lots of color and text, this book can serve as an excellent introduction to the fascinating world of insects. |
|
| Genus | Species |
| Cytheitis | rhodopteron |
| Cytheitis | schultzei |
| Graphium | arcesilaus |
| Graphium | earis |
| Graphium | hipparchus |
| Graphium | iphitas |
| Graphium | orthosilaus |
| Iphimedeia | niepelti |
| Iphimedeia | richardus |
|