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Insects (from Latin insectum) are hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and a pair of antennae. Insects are the most diverse group of animals, with more than a million described species; they represent more than half of all animal species. (Full article...)

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Worker with cocoon

The banded sugar ant (Camponotus consobrinus), also known as the sugar ant, is a species of ant native to Australia. A member of the genus Camponotus in the subfamily Formicinae, it was described by German entomologist Wilhelm Ferdinand Erichson in 1842. Its common name refers to the ant's liking for sugar and sweet food, as well as the distinctive orange-brown band that wraps around its gaster.

The ant is polymorphic and relatively large, with two different castes of workers: major workers (also known as soldiers), and minor workers. These two group of workers measure around 5 to 15 millimetres (0.2 to 0.6 in) in length, while the queen ants are even larger. Mainly nocturnal, banded sugar ants prefer a mesic habitat, and are commonly found in forests and woodlands. They also occur in urban areas, where they are considered a household pest. The ant's diet includes sweet secretions that are retrieved from aphids and other insects that it tends. This species is a competitor of the meat ant (Iridomyrmex purpureus), and food robbery and nest-plugging is known to occur between these two ants. Workers prey on insects, killing them with a spray of formic acid. Banded sugar ants are preyed upon by other ants, echidnas, and birds. The eggs of this species were consumed by Indigenous Australians. (Full article...)

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... that the nearest living relatives of Eosacantha, a fossil tortoise beetle from Colorado, are found in Africa, tropical Asia, and Australia?
... that the extinct sweat bee Halictus? savenyei was the first fossil bee from Canada to be described?
... that the extinct planthopper Emiliana was described from a single 47 million year old wing?
... that the Albian 100-million-year-old fossil wasp Myanmymar is only half a millimetre long?
... that fairyflies include the smallest known insects, smaller than a single-celled Paramecium?

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The following are images from various insect-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Reconstruction Strudiella devonica as a possible hexapod (from Evolution of insects)
Image 2Larva of beetle, family Cerambycidae, showing sclerotised epicranium; rest of body hardly sclerotised (from Insect morphology)
Image 3Fossil gnat in amber, a well-preserved insect fossil. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 4Reconstruction of a Carboniferous insect, the palaeodictyopteran Mazothairos (from Insect flight)
Image 5Hoverfly (Philhelius pedissequum) has indirect flight musculature. (from Insect flight)
Image 6Evolution has produced astonishing variety of appendages in insects, such as these antennae. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 7Indian moon moth (Actias selene) with some of the spiracles identified (from Respiratory system of insects)
Image 8Mayfly nymph with paired abdominal gills (from Insect flight)
Image 9
Insect morphology
Legend of body parts
Tagmata: A – Head, B – Thorax, C – Abdomen.
1. antenna
2. ocelli (lower)
3. ocelli (upper)
4. compound eye
5. brain (cerebral ganglia)
6. prothorax
7. dorsal blood vessel
8. tracheal tubes (trunk with spiracle)
9. mesothorax
10. metathorax
11. forewing
12. hindwing
13. mid-gut (stomach)
14. dorsal tube (heart)
15. ovary
16. hind-gut (intestine, rectum & anus)
17. anus
18. oviduct
19. nerve cord (abdominal ganglia)
20. Malpighian tubes
21. tarsal pads
22. claws
23. tarsus
24. tibia
25. femur
26. trochanter
27. fore-gut (crop, gizzard)
28. thoracic ganglion
29. coxa
30. salivary gland
31. subesophageal ganglion
32. mouthparts
(from Insect morphology)
Image 10Larva of Syrphid fly, member of Cyclorrhapha, without epicranium, almost without sclerotisation apart from its jaws. (from Insect morphology)
Image 11Bumblebee defecating. Note the contraction of the anus, which provides internal pressure. (from Insect morphology)
Image 12Frenulo-retinacular wing coupling in male and female moths (from Insect flight)
Image 13Mandibles of Rhyniognatha hirsti, it may be an oldest insect, but also possible to be a myriapod. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 14Male genitalia of Lepidoptera (from Insect reproductive system)
Image 15Scanning electron micrograph of a cricket spiracle valve (from Respiratory system of insects)
Image 16The Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) have direct flight musculature, as do mayflies. (from Insect flight)
Image 17Generalized arthropod biramous limb. Trueman proposed that an endite and an exite fused to form a wing. (from Insect flight)
Image 18Variety of male structures in Phlebotominae (Diptera, Psychodidae) (from Insect reproductive system)
Image 19Direct flight: muscles attached to wings. Large insects only (from Insect flight)
Image 20Cross-section of wing vein (from Insect morphology)
Image 21The abdominal terminus of male scorpionflies is enlarged into a "genital bulb", as seen in Panorpa communis (from Insect morphology)
Image 22Mazothairos, a Carboniferous member of the now extinct order Palaeodictyoptera. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 23Closeup of a fire ant, showing fine sensory hairs on antennae (from Insect morphology)
Image 24A tau emerald (Hemicordulia tau) dragonfly has flight muscles attached directly to its wings. (from Insect flight)
Image 25Queen Alexandra's birdwing (Ornithoptera alexandrae) of Papua New Guinea (from Insect biodiversity)
Image 26Stylized diagram of insect digestive tract showing malpighian tubule, from an insect of the order Orthoptera. (from Insect morphology)
Image 27Head of Orthoptera, Acrididae. a:antenna; b:ocelli; c:vertex; d:compound eye; e:occiput; f:gena; g:pleurostoma; h:mandible; i:labial palp; j:maxillary palps; k:maxilla; l:labrum; m:clypeus; n:frons (from Insect morphology)
Image 28A pie chart of described eukaryote species, showing just over half of these to be insects (from Insect biodiversity)
Image 29The female genitalia of Lepidoptera (from Insect reproductive system)
Image 30Diagram of a typical insect leg (from Insect morphology)
Image 31Venation of insect wings, based on the Comstock-Needham system (from Insect morphology)
Image 32The development of insect mouthparts from the primitive chewing mouthparts of a grasshopper in the center (A), to the lapping type (B) of a bee, the siphoning type (C) of a butterfly and the sucking type (D) of a female mosquito.
Legend: a – antennae
c – compound eye
lb – labium
lr – labrum
md – mandibles
mx – maxillae (from Insect morphology)

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Credit: Luc Viatour

Panorpa communis, the common scorpionfly (Mecoptera: Panorpidae), is a species of scorpionfly native to Western Europe.

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