Especialidades JA/Insectos - Avanzado/Respuestas

Insectos - Avanzado
Asociación General Estudio de la naturaleza	Destreza: 2 Año de introducción: 1949

Requisitos

1

Tener la especialidad de Insectos.

Para consejos e instrucciones, véase Insectos.

2

Realizar una de las siguientes actividades:

a. Añadir a su colección 50 especies de insectos que representen al menos 10 diferentes órdenes. Las etiquetas deben incluir el nombre del colector, fecha, localidad, el orden, la familia, género y nivel de especie o nombre. (Especímenes montados con descuido y rotas no serán aceptables).

b. Añadir a sus dibujos a color o pinturas 50 especies de insectos que representen al menos 10 diferentes órdenes. Dibujos o pinturas deben ser del tamaño real o más grande, para mostrar los detalles de los pequeños insectos, y en colores naturales. Colocar una etiqueta a los dibujos con la fecha, orden, familia, género y el nombre del nivel de especie.

c. Añadir a sus imágenes de color 50 especies de insectos que representen al menos 10 diferentes órdenes. Todas las imágenes deben estar enfocadas, en primer plano y debidamente etiquetadas, indicando dónde fue fotografiado, fecha de la fotografía, nombres comunes y cada género o nombre del nivel de especie.

3

¿De qué forma las estructuras especiales y los hábitos de los insectos encajan de forma admirable para la vida?

4

Explicar el ciclo de vida de los insectos de cuatro diferentes familias.

Bees

Eggs are laid singly in a cell in a wax honeycomb, produced and shaped by the worker bees. Larvae are initially fed with royal jelly produced by worker bees, later switching to honey and pollen. The exception is a larva fed solely on royal jelly, which will develop into a queen bee. The larva undergoes several moltings before spinning a cocoon within the cell, and pupating. Drones hatch from unfertilized eggs, females (Queens and worker bees) hatch from fertilized eggs. The queen actually can choose to fertilize the egg she is laying, usually depending on what cell she is laying in.

Virgin queens go on mating flights away from their home colony, and mate with multiple drones before returning. The drones die in the act of mating.

Colonies are established not by solitary queens, as in most bees, but by groups known as "swarms", which consist of a mated queen and a large contingent of worker bees. This group moves en masse to a nest site that has been scouted by worker bees beforehand. Once they arrive, they immediately construct a new wax comb and begin to raise new worker brood. This type of nest founding is not seen in any other living bee genus, though there are several groups of Vespid wasps which also found new nests via swarming (sometimes including multiple queens). Also, stingless bees will start new nests with large numbers of worker bees, but the nest is constructed before a queen is escorted to the site, and this worker force is not a true "swarm".

Housefly

Adult housefly

Each female fly can lay over 9,000 eggs. The eggs are white and are about 1.2 mm in length. Within a day, larvae (maggots) hatch from the eggs; they live and feed in (usually dead and decaying) organic material, such as garbage or feces. They are pale-whitish, 3-9 mm long, thinner at the mouth end, and have no legs. They live at least one week. At the end of their third instar, the maggots crawl to a dry cool place and transform into pupae, colored reddish or brown and about 8 mm long. The adult flies then emerge from the pupae. (This whole cycle is known as complete metamorphosis.) The adults live from half a month to a month in the wild, or longer in benign laboratory conditions. After having emerged from the pupae, the flies cease to grow; small flies are not young flies, but are indeed the result of getting insufficient food during the larval stage.

Some 36 hours after having emerged from the pupa, the female is receptive for mating. The male mounts her from behind to inject sperm. Normally the female mates only once, storing the sperm to use it repeatedly for laying several sets of eggs.

Monarch Butterfly

The life cycle of a monarch includes a change of form called complete metamorphosis. The monarch goes through four radically different stages:

1. The eggs are laid by the females during spring and summer breeding months.
2. The eggs hatch, revealing worm-like larvae, the caterpillars. The caterpillars consume their egg cases, then feed on milkweed. During the caterpillar stage, monarchs store energy in the form of fat and nutrients to carry them through the non-feeding pupa stage.
3. In the pupa or chrysalis stage, the caterpillar spins a silk pad on a twig, leaf, etc., and hangs from this pad by its last pair of prolegs. It hangs upside down in the shape of a 'J', and then molts, leaving itself encased in an articulated green exoskeleton. At this point, hormonal changes occur, leading to the development of a butterfly (metamorphosis). The chrysalis darkens (actually becomes transparent) a day before it emerges, and its orange and black wings can be seen.
4. The mature butterfly emerges after about two pupal weeks and hangs from the split chrysalis for several hours until its wings are dry (often in the morning). Meanwhile fluids are pumped into the crinkled wings until they become full and stiff. Some of this orangey fluid (called meconium) drips from the wings. Finally (usually in the afternoon) the monarch spreads its wings, quivers them to be sure they are stiff, and then flies away, to feed on a variety of flowers, including milkweed flowers, red clover, and goldenrod.

Antlion

• 

  Antlion larvae
• 

  Antlion adult

The life cycle of the antlion begins with oviposition (egg-laying). The female antlion repeatedly taps the sand surface with the tip of her abdomen. She then inserts her abdomen into the sand and lays an egg. The antlion larva is a ferocious-appearing creature with a robust, fusiform body, a very plump abdomen, the thorax bearing three pairs of walking legs. The prothorax forms a slender mobile "neck" for the large, square, flattened head, which bears an enormous pair of sicklelike jaws with several sharp, hollow projections. The jaws are formed by the maxillae and mandibles, which in each pincer enclose a canal for injecting venom between them. Depending on species and where it lives, the larvae will either hide under leaves or pieces of wood, in cracks of rocks, or dig pits in sandy areas.

The pupal stage of the antlion is quiescent. The larva makes a globular cocoon of sand stuck together with fine silk spun from a slender spinneret at the posterior end of the body. These cocoons may be buried several centimeters deep in the sand. It remains there for one month, until the completion of the transformation into the sexually mature insect, which then emerges from the case, leaving the pupal integument behind, and climbs to the surface. After about 20 minutes the adult's wings are fully opened and it will fly off in search of a mate. The adult is considerably larger than the larva; they exhibit the greatest disparity in size between larva and adult of any type of holometabolous insects, by virtue of the adults having an extremely thin, flimsy exoskeleton - in other words, they have extremely low mass per unit of volume.

5

Nombrar dos clases de insectos sociales. ¿En qué se diferencian de los insectos no sociales?

Social insects, such as the termites, ants and many bees and wasps, live together in large well-organized colonies that may be so tightly integrated and genetically similar that the colonies of some species are sometimes considered superorganisms.

The term eusocial was originally defined to include those organisms (originally, only invertebrates) that had certain features:

1. Reproductive division of labor (with or without sterile castes)
2. Overlapping generations
3. Cooperative care of young

The most familiar examples are insects such as ants, bees, and wasps (order Hymenoptera), as well as termites (order Isoptera), all with reproductive queens and more or less sterile workers and/or soldiers.

6

Nombrar al menos cuatro insectos que transmiten enfermedades al hombre. Nombrar al menos una enfermedad trasportada por cada una de ellos.

Mosquito	Flea	Louse	Housefly	Tsetse fly
Dengue fever Yellow fever Malaria West Nile virus Eastern Equine Encephalitis Western Equine Encephalitis Chikungunya fever La Crosse Encephalitis	Bubonic plague Typhus Tapeworms Encephalitis Tularemia	Typhus Relapsing fever	Typhoid Dysentery Cholera Trachoma	Sleeping sickness

7

Hacer uno de los siguientes:

7a

Red aérea

An aerial net can be made from some netting, a coat hanger, a broomstick, and some duct tape.

For netting it might be tempting to use pantyhose, but it is almost impossible to find pieces large enough to make a good net. Instead, use cheesecloth or material used for making a bridal veil (you can get that pretty cheaply at a fabric store). Sew the netting into a tube and close it at one end, and make a hem at the open end.

Unwind the coat hanger and form it into a circle with two prongs. Thread it through the hem at the opening of the netting. Attach the prongs on the end of the coat hanger wire to the broomstick with duct tape. If desired, you can also use hose clamps to hold the wire to the broomstick.

7b

Red de barrido

It is used for sweeping along at ground level through an open field. It is made the same way as the aerial net described above, except that an old pillowcase should be used instead of netting.

7c

Red acuático

An aquatic net can be made by attaching a kitchen strainer to a broomstick with hose clamps. Unless you are using your very own strainer, get permission from its owner (and from the person who uses it the most)! You will quickly learn that using your mother's (or your wife's) kitchen strainer to catch bugs will not earn you any points with her!

To use the aquatic net, submerge it just beneath the surface of the water with the opening facing up. Wait until an aquatic insect swims over the opening, and then quickly lift.

8

Fabricar y usar una trampa para insectos voladores nocturnos.

An easy way to trap night-flying insects is to suspend a white bedsheet vertically next to a light bulb. Be careful that the bulb does not touch the sheet, as this would be a fire hazard. If possible, use a light bulb that emits ultra-violet light (but be careful to not look at the lit bulb as it can cause eye damage). The insects will be attracted to the light and land on the sheet. They can be picked off by hand.

You can also suspend a light bulb over a pan filled with water and a few drops of dish soap. The dish soap breaks the surface tension on the water so that the insects sink and drown (rather than walking on the surface). Such a trap can be left overnight.

9

Realizar una de las siguientes actividades:

9a

Identificar a partir de fotos o de insectos vivos uno de cada una de los siguientes familias:

i

Acuáticos

Water Strider

The family Gerridae contains insects commonly known as water striders, water bugs, magic bugs, pond skaters, skaters, skimmers, water scooters, water skaters, water skeeters, water skimmers or water skippers. These are predatory insects which rely on surface tension to walk on top of water. They live on the surface of ponds, slow streams, marshes, and other quiet waters. They can move very quickly, up to 1.5 m/s.

ii

Que comen hojas

The horse chestnut leaf miner

The horse chestnut leaf miner (Cameraria ohridella or Cameraria operculella) is a moth of the lepidopteran family Gracillariidae. The Horse Chestnut Leaf Miner was first observed in Macedonia in northern Greece in the late 1970's, and was described as a new species in 1986. The moth grows up to 5 mm long and has shiny, bright brown forewings with thin black and white stripes. Its larvae are leaf miners on the Common Horse-chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum), causing significant damage to the appearance of the trees. Despite the poor appearance of horse-chestnut trees infested with C. ohridella, there is no evidence that damage by the moth leads to a decline in tree health, the development of dieback, or tree death. Trees survive repeated infestations and re-flush normally in the following year. It appears that most of the damage caused by the moth occurs too late in the growing season to greatly affect tree performance. Consequently, there is no reason to fell and remove trees just because they are attacked by C. ohridella.

iii

Que enrollan hojas

European oak leafroller

The tortrix moth Tortrix viridana is known as the European oak leafroller and the green oak moth. It is a distinctive green moth whose larvae feed on tree leaves, especially oak.

An infestation of the larvae can defoliate an oak tree. The adult female lays its eggs next to leaf buds which the larvae consume when they emerge. As the larvae grow bigger they eat larger leaves, and then roll themselves up in a full-sized leaf to pupate.

iv

Que perforan madera

Common furniture beetle

The common furniture beetle (Anobium punctatum) is a woodboring beetle. In the larval stage it bores on wood and feeds upon it. Adult Anobium punctatum measure 2.7–4.5 mm in length.

Adults do not feed, they just reproduce. The female lays her eggs into cracks in wood or inside old exit holes, if available. The eggs hatch after some three weeks, each producing a 1 mm long, creamy white, C-shaped larva. For three to four years the larvae bore semi-randomly through timber, following and eating the starchy part of the wood grain, and grow up to 7 mm. They come nearer to the wood surface when ready to pupate. They excavate small spaces just under the wood surface and take up to eight weeks to pupate. The adults then break through to the surface as adults, making a 1mm to 1.5 mm exit hole and spilling dust, the first visible signs of an infestation.

v

Que comen papel

Silverfish

Lepisma saccharina (commonly called the silverfish) is a small, wingless insect typically measuring from a half to one inch (12–25 mm).

The favorite food of silverfish is any matter that contains starch or polysaccharides, such as dextrin in adhesives. These include glue, book bindings, paper, photos, sugar, hair, and dandruff. Silverfish can also cause damage to books, tapestries, and textiles. Silverfish will commonly graze in and around showers, baths, and sinks on the cellulose present in many shampoos, shaving foams and so on. Apart from these cases, the damage caused by silverfish is negligible and they have no direct effect on human health beyond psychological distress to those who are frightened or disgusted by their appearance. Other substances that may be eaten include cotton, linen, silk and synthetic fibers, and dead insects or even its own exuvia (moulted exoskeleton). During famine, a silverfish may even attack leatherware and synthetic fabrics. In extreme cases, silverfish may live for a year without eating.

vi

Parásitos que viven en el cuerpo de aves o mamíferos

Cat flea

The cat flea's primary host is the domestic cat, but this is also the primary flea infesting dogs in most of the world. The cat flea can also maintain its life cycle on other carnivores and on the Virginia opossum. Rabbits, rodents, ruminants and humans can be infested or bitten, but a population of cat fleas cannot be sustained by these aberrant hosts.

Cat fleas can transmit other parasites and infections to dogs and cats and also to humans. The most prominent of these are Bartonella, the tapeworm Dipylidium caninum, and murine typhus.

9b

Describir las castas de las termitas y abejas

Termites

Kings and Queens

A female that has flown, mated, and is producing eggs, is called a "queen". Similarly, a male that has flown, mated, and remains in proximity to a queen, is termed a "King". These anthropocentric terms have caused great misunderstanding of colony dynamics. Research using genetic techniques to determine relatedness of colony members is showing that colonies are not headed by a single monogamous royal pair. Multiple pairs of kings and queens within a colony are not uncommon. In some families (Rhinotermitidae and Termitidae, and possibly others) sperm competition does not seem to occur, suggesting that only one male (king) generally mates within the colony.

Workers

Worker termites undertake the labors of foraging, food storage, brood, nest maintenance, and some of the defense effort in certain species. Workers are the main caste in the colony for the digestion of cellulose in food and are the most likely to be found in infested wood.

Soldiers

The soldier caste has anatomical and behavioral specializations, providing strength and armor which are primarily useful against ant attack. The proportion of soldiers within a colony varies both within and among species. Many soldiers have jaws so enlarged that they cannot feed themselves, but instead, like juveniles, are fed by workers.

Honey Bees

Queen

A honey bee colony has only one queen, and she is the one that lays all the eggs. If the queen dies or becomes sick, the workers can make a new queen by feeding the larvae royal jelly. As these larvae mature, they attain the ability to lay eggs. They will fight to the death until only one bee remains as the new queen. A fertile queen is able to lay fertilized or unfertilized eggs. The unfertilized eggs develop into drones and the fertilized eggs develop into either workers or virgin queens.

Drones

Drones are male bees. They have no stingers, and their only job is to mate with the queen. Drones do not even feed themselves, but rely on the workers to feed them. The colony does not need drones when the queen is not laying eggs, and needs to conserve its resources to survive the winter. Therefore, drones are not allowed to live in the hive in winter - they are ejected and die. In the spring when the queen lays eggs, they will, being unfertilized, develop into drones.

Workers

The vast majority of honey bees are workers, which are the sterile females. They have many responsibilities throughout their lives:

Age	Task
1-2 days	Clean the brood cells
3-5 days	Feed the worker larvae beebread made of pollen and honey.
6-11 days	Feed royal jelly to the queen larva and bee milk, which is just another term for royal jelly, to the 1-3 day old drone and worker larvae.
11-17 days	Build cells from wax, repair old cells, and store nectar and pollen brought in by other workers. Early in the worker's career she will exude wax from the space between several of her abdominal segments. Four sets of wax glands, situated inside the last four ventral segments of the abdomen, produce wax for comb construction.
18-21 days	Soldier bees hang around near the entrance and attack invaders. Entrance guard bees inspect incoming bees to ensure that they are bringing in food and have the correct hive odor. Other bees will be rejected or attacked with soldier bees. Outer guards may take short flights around the outside of the hive in response to disturbances.
22-42 days	The forager and scout bees travel (up to 1.5 miles) to a nectar source, pollen source or to collect propolis.

9c

Comparar el grado de inteligencia exhibidos por un saltamontes o un escarabajo y una hormiga, abeja o avispa.

Ants, bees, and wasps are eusocial insects. Each individual cooperates with the others in the colony. They work together as if they were different parts of a larger organism. This behavior requires a greater degree of intelligence than is exhibited by the likes of grasshoppers and beetles (which are solitary).

The Ant and the Grasshopper is one of Aesop's fables drawing upon this difference. The fable concerns a grasshopper who has spent the warm months singing away while the ant (or ants in some editions) worked to store up food for winter. After the winter has come, the grasshopper finds itself dying of hunger, and upon asking the ant for food is only rebuked for its idleness. The story is used to teach the virtues of hard work and saving, and the perils of improvidence. Some versions of the fable state a moral at the end, along the lines of:

Idleness brings want

To work today is to eat tomorrow

It is best to prepare for the days of necessity

References

• http://www.qm.qld.gov.au/features/insects/collecting/pdf/MethodsOfInsectCollectionPDF.pdf