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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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Two wingless adults and a nymph

The black bean aphid (Aphis fabae) is a small black insect in the genus Aphis, with a broad, soft body, a member of the order Hemiptera. Other common names include blackfly, bean aphid, and beet leaf aphid. In the warmer months of the year, it is found in large numbers on the undersides of leaves and on the growing tips of host plants, including various agricultural crops and many wild and ornamental plants. Both winged and wingless forms exist, and at this time of year, they are all females. They suck sap from stems and leaves and cause distortion of the shoots, stunted plants, reduced yield, and spoiled crops. This aphid also acts as a vector for viruses that cause plant disease, and the honeydew it secretes may encourage the growth of sooty mould. It breeds profusely by live birth, but its numbers are kept in check, especially in the later part of the summer, by various predatory and parasitic insects. Ants feed on the honeydew it produces, and take active steps to remove predators. It is a widely distributed pest of agricultural crops and can be controlled by chemical or biological means. In the autumn, winged forms move to different host plants, where both males and females are produced. These mate and the females lay eggs which overwinter. (Full article...)

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... that the golden-green carpenter bee defends its nesting burrow by blocking the entrance with its abdomen?
... that caterpillars of the oak leafroller and oak leaftier moths are major defoliators of oak trees, with leafroller timber losses in Pennsylvania of over $100,000,000 in the early 1970s?
... that Nanoraphidia electroburmica, known from a fossil in amber, is the smallest known snakefly species, living or extinct?
... that researchers finally collected a larva and an adult female Tonyosynthemis ofarrelli which match an earlier male specimen?
... that the common spangle gall on the leaves of pedunculate oak trees is produced by the gall wasp Neurotus quercus-baccarum?

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

Image 1The female genitalia of Lepidoptera (from Insect reproductive system)
Image 2Evolution has produced astonishing variety of appendages in insects, such as these antennae. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 3Queen Alexandra's birdwing (Ornithoptera alexandrae) of Papua New Guinea (from Insect biodiversity)
Image 4A pie chart of described eukaryote species, showing just over half of these to be insects (from Insect biodiversity)
Image 5A tau emerald (Hemicordulia tau) dragonfly has flight muscles attached directly to its wings. (from Insect flight)
Image 6
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 7Larva of Syrphid fly, member of Cyclorrhapha, without epicranium, almost without sclerotisation apart from its jaws. (from Insect morphology)
Image 8Male genitalia of Lepidoptera (from Insect reproductive system)
Image 9Bumblebee defecating. Note the contraction of the anus, which provides internal pressure. (from Insect morphology)
Image 10Indian moon moth (Actias selene) with some of the spiracles identified (from Respiratory system of insects)
Image 11Scanning electron micrograph of a cricket spiracle valve (from Respiratory system of insects)
Image 12Mazothairos, a Carboniferous member of the now extinct order Palaeodictyoptera. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 13Fossil gnat in amber, a well-preserved insect fossil. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 14Direct flight: muscles attached to wings. Large insects only (from Insect flight)
Image 15The abdominal terminus of male scorpionflies is enlarged into a "genital bulb", as seen in Panorpa communis (from Insect morphology)
Image 16Generalized arthropod biramous limb. Trueman proposed that an endite and an exite fused to form a wing. (from Insect flight)
Image 17The 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)
Image 18Cross-section of wing vein (from Insect morphology)
Image 19Variety of male structures in Phlebotominae (Diptera, Psychodidae) (from Insect reproductive system)
Image 20Mayfly nymph with paired abdominal gills (from Insect flight)
Image 21Larva of beetle, family Cerambycidae, showing sclerotised epicranium; rest of body hardly sclerotised (from Insect morphology)
Image 22The Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) have direct flight musculature, as do mayflies. (from Insect flight)
Image 23Reconstruction Strudiella devonica as a possible hexapod (from Evolution of insects)
Image 24Reconstruction of a Carboniferous insect, the palaeodictyopteran Mazothairos (from Insect flight)
Image 25Hoverfly (Xanthogramma pedissequum) has indirect flight musculature. (from Insect flight)
Image 26Frenulo-retinacular wing coupling in male and female moths (from Insect flight)
Image 27Mandibles of Rhyniognatha hirsti, it may be an oldest insect, but also possible to be a myriapod. (from Evolution of insects)
Image 28Head 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 29Diagram of a typical insect leg (from Insect morphology)
Image 30Venation of insect wings, based on the Comstock-Needham system (from Insect morphology)
Image 31Closeup of a fire ant, showing fine sensory hairs on antennae (from Insect morphology)
Image 32Stylized diagram of insect digestive tract showing malpighian tubule, from an insect of the order Orthoptera. (from Insect morphology)

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Credit: Noodle snacks

Green lacewings (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) is a family of lacewings containing about 85 genera and (according to different sources) 1,300–2,000 species. Members of the genera Chrysopa (pictured) and Chrysoperla are very common in North America and Europe; they are very similar and many of their species have been moved from one genus to the other times and again.

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