Insect Biology & Identification Flashcards
7 cards from real ACE practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Insect Biology & Identification flashcards as text
Diapause in insects is best defined as:
Answer: A state of arrested development and reduced metabolic activity in response to environmental cues
Diapause is a hormonally regulated, programmed dormancy that halts development and lowers metabolism, allowing insects to survive predictably unfavorable conditions such as winter or drought.
In insect wing venation, the term 'costal margin' refers to:
Answer: The leading (anterior) edge of the wing
The costal margin is the thickened, reinforced anterior edge of the wing, often bearing the prominent costa vein that strengthens it during flight.
Ecdysone is an insect hormone primarily responsible for:
Answer: Triggering molting (ecdysis) and coordinating metamorphic changes
Ecdysone (20-hydroxyecdysone in active form) is the primary molting hormone in insects, released from the prothoracic glands and responsible for initiating each ecdysis.
Which characteristic distinguishes Siphonaptera (fleas) from most other holometabolous orders?
Answer: Adult fleas are laterally compressed and wingless, adapted for moving through fur or feathers
Adult fleas are highly specialized ectoparasites — secondarily wingless, strongly laterally flattened, with backward-pointing spines and powerful hind legs for jumping.
The term 'phytophagous' when applied to an insect means it:
Answer: Feeds on plant material
Phytophagous insects feed on living plant tissue; this guild includes leaf-chewers, sap-suckers, seed feeders, and stem-borers and constitutes the majority of pest species.
When identifying Diptera larvae to determine if they are muscoid (calyptrate) flies, which structure is most diagnostically useful?
Answer: The pattern of the posterior spiracular plates
The posterior spiracular plates — their number of slits, presence/absence of a button, and surrounding peritremes — are the primary diagnostic characters for identifying fly larvae in forensic and pest contexts.
The 'pronotum' is a structure found on which insect body region?
Answer: The first thoracic segment (prothorax), often forming a dorsal shield
The pronotum is the dorsal sclerite (tergum) of the prothorax, and in many insects such as cockroaches and beetles it is enlarged and serves as a prominent identifying feature.