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Some moths do not feed after emerging from the pupa, and have greatly reduced, vestigial mouthparts or none at all. All but a few adult Lepidoptera lack mandibles (the superfamily known as the mandibulate moths have fully developed mandibles as adults), but also have the remaining mouthparts in the form of an elongated sucking tube, the proboscis.
The mouthparts of orthopteran insects are often used as a basic example of mandibulate (chewing) mouthparts, and the mandibles themselves are likewise generalized in structure. They are large and hardened, shaped like pinchers, with cutting surfaces on the distal portion and chewing or grinding surfaces basally .
A few Lepidoptera species have reduced mouthparts and do not feed in the adult state. Others, such as the basal family Micropterigidae, have chewing mouthparts. [21] The proboscis (plural – proboscises) is formed from maxillary galeae and is adapted for sucking nectar. [3] It consists of two tubes held together by hooks and separable for ...
Head of a horse-fly showing large compound eyes and stout piercing mouthparts A head of a fly, showing the two compound eyes and three simple eyes clearly. Flies have a mobile head with a pair of large compound eyes on the sides of the head, and in most species, three small ocelli on the top. The compound eyes may be close together or widely ...
Chewing insects have two mandibles, one on each side of the head. The mandibles are positioned between the labrum and maxillae. The mandibles cut and crush food, and may be used for defense; generally, they have an apical cutting edge, and the more basal molar area grinds the food.
Most adults have short lives during which they do not feed. In fly fishing, artificial flies called dry flies are tied to imitate adults, while larvae and pupae are imitated with artificial flies called wet flies or nymphs. It is also possible to use them as bait, though this is not as common as artificial flies and is known as bait fishing.
They have large lateral compound eyes, and may or may not also have ocelli. Their mouthparts have strong mandibles suitable for chewing, and lack the various adaptations found in most other holometabolan insect groups. They have four wings, usually similar in size and shape, and a generalised pattern of veins. [4]
The mouthparts are modified for sucking and adapted for feeding on flowers. The length varies considerably: for example, the Anthracinae have short mouthparts, with the labium terminating in a large fleshy labellum; in Phthiriinae, the tube is considerably longer, and in Bombyliinae more than four times the length of the head.