ENT10-Entomology
Module 1: The Nature of Insects
Introduction
Welcome to the wonderful world of insects. Insects are the most numerous, diverse group
of animals on our planet earth. This module shall discuss the nature of insects, their distinguishing
characteristics and their effects on us and our environment.
Learning Outcomes
After completing this lesson, you are expected to be able to:
Distinguish insects from other animals; and
Understand the benefits and harm that insects can do to our resources and environment.
Duration: 1 week
ACTIVITY
K-W-L Chart
Directions: Based from your experiences and understanding, write brief statements describing
about insects.
What I Know? What I Want to Know? What I Learn?
ANALYSIS
What are insects?
Writers: Cecirly G. Puig, PhD.
Sheryl S. Bayang
ENT10-Entomology
How do insects affect man?
ABSTRACTION
What are insects?
INSECTS are distinguished from their relatives by the presence of three body divisions – head,
thorax and abdomen. The thorax bears three pairs of legs (although immature mites also have three
pairs of legs) and usually two pairs of wings in the adult stage. Some insects, like flies and
mosquitoes, have one pair of functional wings while others are wingless, such as bedbugs and
fleas.
The exoskeleton of arthropods contains a horny substance called chitin which makes it
impervious to water and resistant to chemicals.
The appendages such as the legs and antennae and palpi consist of definite joints or segments.
The structural features of these appendages relate to the insects’ habit and mode of life and rate of
value in identifying them.
Arthropods comprise about 80% of all animal species described and insects constitute 90% of
the identified arthropod species. Insects, therefore, constitute over 70% of all known species of
animals. They are the most predominant in both total number and kind. Among the insects, the
most numerous are the beetles, butterflies, moths, ants, bees, flies, termites and mosquitoes.
How do insects affect man?
A. Beneficial effects
1. Some insects (like honey bees and wasps) are good pollinators of many economic crops
especially those plants whose male flowers are located on different plants. Yields of some
crops can be increased when honeybees are present in the farm. For example, cucurbits
(cucumber, squash, & patola) yield could increase 100% with pollinators.
2. As source of useful products
Some insects manufacture useful products that are traded internationally such as silk,
honey, bees wax, pollen, royal jelly, shellac and varnish. Silk is produced by silkworm larva
when it is about to pupate by wrapping around itself silk thread at the rate of 1.5cm a minute
for 2 to 3 days. Honey is produced by the worker bee from the nectar collected from plants
and converting it to honey and storing it in the honeycomb. It takes a single worker bee about
100,000 to 200,000 trips to flowers, or a trip roughly equivalent to five times around the
earth, to gather a kilo of honey. Bees wax is produced by worker bees in order to build combs
Writers: Cecirly G. Puig, PhD.
Sheryl S. Bayang
ENT10-Entomology
while pollen is gathered and stored in the honeycomb as source of protein. The royal jelly is
produced by the young bees in order to feed the queen bee throughout its life and the
immature larvae during the first three days of their existence. Shellac and varnishes are
products derived from the secretion of female lac insects grown on some tropical trees.
3. As natural enemies of insect and weed pests
Many insects serve as predator, parasitoid, parasite, antagonist and competitor of insect
and weed pests. They are sometimes referred to as biological control agents.
4. As food for humans
A number of insect species are utilized as food and are considered as delicacies, e.g.
“adobong suhong”, fried crickets, fried June beetle, honey bee larvae and locust. Most
insects contain about 70% protein and can be a potential source of food nutrient for people
in the future. In some countries, canned insects are occasionally considered delicacies and
are expensive.
5. As food for animals that are valuable to humans
Insects constitute a sizeable proportion of the food of fishes, frogs, snakes, lizards, birds,
and mammals. Animals that feed on insects are called insectivorous or entomophagous.
Many of these animals serve as food for people or assist them as companions, guides,
protectors or source of amusement. Mudfish, catfish or “tilapia” grown in fishponds and rice
fields could be commercially grown using insect light traps to attract insect pests for food.
This, at the same time, regulate pest population to a non-damaging level.
6. Other uses
Some burrowing insects can improve the physical condition of the soil and the
deposition of metabolic by-products and dead bodies can increase soil fertility. As
scavengers, they rid the earth’s surface of decaying organic matter and help reduce pollution
in our environment. Insects are convenient materials for genetic and biological studies. They
can be mass produced cheaply in the laboratory at a very short time. They can also be used
as indicator for pollution. Sanitary biologists use some insects to determine presence of
contaminants in drinking water.
B. Harmful effects
1. As source of annoyance or injury
Common household insects such as bed bugs, head lice, fleas and mosquitoes cause
discomfort by biting. Skin disorder can result from scratching the affected skin. Insect bites
can cause skin infection among people who have very sensitive skin. A number of
pathological conditions are directly attributed to insects. Bee and wasps stings are painful
and these may cause fever, nausea, vomiting, paralysis and even death to some sensitive
people. For instance, a pregnant women had an abortion after a bee sting. Some fly larvae
may invade eyes, ears, nostrils, digestive tract, urinary tract or skin. The netting hairs of
some caterpillars can cause inflammatory reaction of the skin. The bodies of some insects
when inhaled by some sensitive persons produce an allergic reaction similar to hay fever
and asthma.
Writers: Cecirly G. Puig, PhD.
Sheryl S. Bayang
ENT10-Entomology
2. As transmitter of diseases of humans and animals
Insects may serve either as mechanical carriers or as biological vectors of human and
animal diseases. Some flies can carry causative agents of cholera, dysentery and typhoid
fever through their mouth parts, legs, body hairs and feces. Plague Bacilli and malarial
parasite can multiply in the digestive tract of fleas and mosquitoes, respectively, before they
are transmitted to animals and humans.
The importance of insects to public health is recognized by the international community.
Four of the six internationally quarantinable diseases are transmitted by insects. These are
plague, relapsing fever, typhus and yellow fever. Mosquitoes can transmit to people
malaria, filarial and viral diseases such as dengue, Japanese B encephalitis and the
hemorrhagic fevers of Southeast Asia. Among the various nervous disorders of humans is
an aversion to the sight of and contact with insects.
3. As economic pests
Insects cause losses to economic animals, crops and forest tree production worth billions
of pesos annually. They can reduce the quality of stored food products and various articles
of commerce by feeding and by contaminating these products with their excreta and body
parts. Insects can transmit a number of plant pathogens such as viruses, bacteria and fungi,
causing high damage to animals, crops and forest products. Some insects such as termites,
book lice and some beetles are pests in construction materials, books and furniture. The
price of and efforts in controlling insects are relatively small compared to the losses incurred
in terms of time, money and manpower.
APPLICATION
Short Survey. List down all the insects that local people in your community can recognize and
list down all the benefits and harm they cause to people. In your report, follow the
given table below:
Insect species Description of association to human welfare
Writers: Cecirly G. Puig, PhD.
Sheryl S. Bayang
ENT10-Entomology
Closure
Having learned the nature of insects, we will explore in the next lesson the biology and
ecology of insects and the factors affecting their abundance and distribution. This will guide crop
protectionists in the proper identification of crop insect pest/s and in the manipulation of their
population to a non-damaging level.
Writers: Cecirly G. Puig, PhD.
Sheryl S. Bayang