2/20/18

Insect Systems

The internal anatomy of an insect contains the basic

systems found in humans.

Muscular Digestive

Integument Respiratory

Skeletal Excretory

Circulatory Endocrine

Nervous Reproductive

Integumentary and skeletal systems





Integument (skin)
Protects internal organs and tissues
Excludes pathogens, parasites, pesticides
Regulates water balance
Skeleton
Provides attachment for muscles
Supports and protect for organs

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Insect integument
•  Outer layer (cuticle)
•  Inner, living layer of cells (epidermis)
•  The water loss problem

Pressure sensitive cells provide a sense of touch to the insect.

Exoskeleton
•  The rigid exoskeleton cannot grow.

•  So it must be periodically shed to permit

growth.

•  Called molting or ecdysis

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Keeled Treehopper

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Muscular System

1.  Body support and posture

2.  Powers wings for flight
3.  Powers legs for locomotion
4.  Aids in movement of the internal

    viscera and digestive tract

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Digestive (Alimentary) System

•  Functions in the consumption and processing
of food.

Anatomy of the Gut

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Anatomy of the Gut

•  The three main divisions of the gut are…

•  The foregut, midgut, and hindgut.

•  The foregut and hindgut are lined with

cuticle (continuous with outer surface).

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•  The midgut is not lined with cuticle.

•  Each of these regions has a specific

function.

•  The foregut includes: mouth, pharynx,

esophagus, crop, and proventriculus.

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•  Recall, mandibles (jaws) break food

down so that it can fit into the mouth.

•  Once food has entered the mouth,

salivary glands empty (aids food
breakdown).

•  The pharynx is a region lined with

contracting muscle (moves food to
esophagus).

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•  The esophagus is analogous to our

throat and is a conduit to the crop.

•  The crop is a storage area for food.

•  The crop is surrounded by muscle,

which pushes food to the proventriculus.

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•  The proventriculus is, generally, lined

with small “teeth” that pulverize the
food.

•  In the midgut, food begins to break

down chemically and nutrients are
absorbed.

•  Gastric cecae often harbor

microorganisms (e.g., bacteria) that
help digestion.

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•  The midgut is lined with a single layer of

(epithelial) cells.

•  It is highly folded, which provides more

surface area for absorption of nutrients.

•  The lining of the midgut is the

peritrophic envelope.

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•  This porous membrane protects the

midgut cells from abrasion and allows
nutrients to move through it.

•  Review: The midgut (1) breaks down

food chemically, and (2) takes up
nutrients through the epithelial cells.

•  The hindgut includes: ileum, rectum,

and anus.

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•  Waste products are concentrated and

packaged.

•  Water is absorbed from waste as it

passes towards the anus.

•  Malpighian tubules serve as kidneys of

the insect.

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•  Waste is eventually packaged as frass

and expelled.

•  Insect feces are often of a distinctive

shape and used in the identification of
species.

Frass is often
distinctive and can
be used for
identification.

European corn borer

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Powder post beetle-

a common pest of
homes that is often
first noticed because
of its frass.

Anatomy of the Gut

Anatomy of the Gut

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Excretory System

1.  To assist in the elimination of excretory


products (i.e., urine, urea, and uric

acid)

2.  To assist in the reabsorption of water,


salts, etc., thus preventing dehydration

Malpighian tubules excrete water, salts & waste

products or retain them if the insect is under water
or salt stress.


Circulatory System

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Circulatory System
•  In insects, there are no arteries, veins, or
capillaries (= open system).

•  Instead, the organs sit in an open cavity

(hemocoel) filled with hemolymph (blood).

•  Insect blood is approximately 90% water and

10% cellular. (Little to no oxygen transport).

Functions of the Circulatory System

•  Transport of nutrients and hormones.
•  Storage of amino acids (used for building
proteins).
•  Water reservoir
•  Hydrostatic pressure for movement
•  Protection from “foreigners” that invade the
body (e.g., bacteria, viruses, etc.).

Anatomy of the Circulatory System

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•  Includes a dorsal heart and anterior

aorta

•  Together, these form the dorsal vessel,

which extends the length of the body.

•  Often, the heart is swollen in each of

the first 9 abdominal segments to form a
series of 9 chambers each with a pair of
openings.

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•  These openings in the heart are called

ostia.

•  Special muscles work in concert with

the heart to regulate blood flow.

•  The aorta carries blood forward to the

head where it empties into the
hemocoel.

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•  Blood flows backward through the body,

bathing the tissues as it goes.

•  It then moves into the heart through the

ostia (this cycles repeats).

•  The insect heart contracts between

14-150 times a minute (depending on
the species and its activity).

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•  Blood flow, although important, is not as

critical in insects as it is in us, since
blood is not carrying oxygen.

Insect blood cells

Blood worms, unlike all other insects, use a red

pigment to transport oxygen in their blood, like
mammals.

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Blood cells are also part of the immune system of insects. They
use encapsulation (formation of a capsule made of flattened blood
cells) to wall off and then kill by poisoning invaders such as the
eggs or larvae of parasitic insects.

Black dots are

melanized
parasitoid eggs
killed by
encapsulation.

Encapsulated eggs seen in cross section inside a bundle of

flattened blood cells.

Cross section of 1
of 2 parasite eggs

Outer layer
consists of
flattened blood
cells making a
capsule

Capsules
surrounding
parasitoid larvae

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Respiratory System

Respiratory System
•  Respiration is gas exchange (viz., oxygen
enters the body, carbon dioxide exits).

•  Insect blood does not contain an oxygen

carrying pigment (like hemoglobin in
humans).

•  So how does oxygen get transported so that

respiration can occur?

Respiratory System
•  Insects have massive plumbing with tubes
carrying air to virtually every cell in the body.

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Respiratory System

Respiratory System
•  Gas exchange occurs through a series
of branching tubes.

Respiratory System
•  Externally, air enters through the
spiracles.

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Respiratory System
•  Spiracles are small abdominal openings
that open and close when air is
inspired and expired.

Spiracles are the openings of the

ventilation system to the outside.
There are one pair per segment
on the thorax and 6 pairs on the
abdomen.

Respiratory System
•  Each spiracle is connected to a tracheal
trunk.

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Respiratory System
•  Each spiracle is connected to a tracheal
trunk.

Respiratory System
•  Tracheae are composed of spirals of
tough filaments, which resist collapse.

Respiratory System
•  Tracheae are composed of spirals of
tough filaments, which resist collapse.

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Respiratory System
•  Tracheae are composed of spirals of
tough filaments, which resist collapse.

Respiratory System
Tracheae

Respiratory System
•  Tracheae are often connected to air
sacs within the insect.

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Respiratory System
•  Tracheae branch forming smaller tubes.
Eventually they branch to form
tracheoles.

Respiratory System
•  Tracheoles are intimately associated
with cells, and are often intracellular
(i.e., they physically penetrate cells).

Respiratory System
•  Tracheoles are intimately associated
with cells, and are often intracellular
(i.e., they physically penetrate cells).
Tracheae Tracheoles

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Respiratory System
•  Many tracheoles are associated with
muscles cells, which have high
requirements for oxygen.

Respiratory System
•  Finally, the entire lining of the
respiratory system (up to the trachea,
but not tracheoles), is molted along with
the cuticle.

Respiratory System

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Reproductive System

1.  To produce gametes (egg and sperm)

2.  To assist in events such as egg laying,


mating, development of an embryo, and

fertilization

The male organs

The insect penis is highly sculptured and is

useful in species recognition.

The female organs

The copulatory end of a

female moth

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The reproductive tract opens to the outside at the tip of the abdomen, which
is used to deposit the eggs, in this checkerspot butterfly.

and in this grasshopper

Endocrine System
1.  Assist in coordination of long-term events

with chemicals known as hormones or
neurohormones

2.  To produce and release hormones

3.  To assist in the coordination of internal


events such as digestion, reproduction,

etc.

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Hormones

•  Growth/Development/Molting
•  Diapause (arrested development)
•  Metabolism
•  Reproduction
•  Behavior
–  Migration
–  Mating
–  Social Behavior

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