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Male genitalia of Lepidoptera. The main component of the male reproductive system is the testicle, suspended in the body cavity by tracheae and the fat body.The more primitive apterygote insects have a single testis, and in some lepidopterans the two maturing testes are secondarily fused into one structure during the later stages of larval development, although the ducts leading from them ...
Lepidoptera (/ ˌ l ɛ p ɪ ˈ d ɒ p t ər ə / LEP-ih-DOP-tər-ə) or lepidopterans is an order of winged insects which includes butterflies and moths.About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera have been described, representing 10% of the total described species of living organisms, [1] [2] making it the second largest insect order (behind Coleoptera) with 126 families [3] and 46 superfamilies ...
The males are blind, apterous, and their body length is only 40% that of females. With a body length averaging 186 μm (for 8 specimens measured, which ranged from 139 to 240 μm), males of D. echmepterygis have the shortest body length of all known insects (smaller than certain species of Paramecium , amoeba , and shorter than certain bacteria ...
The appearance of gigantic insects is consistent with high atmospheric oxygen at that time, as the respiratory system of insects constrains their size. [123] The largest flying insects today are much smaller, with the largest wingspan belonging to the white witch moth (Thysania agrippina), at approximately 28 cm (11 in). [124]
Their size varies between species and instars (moults) from as small as 1 millimetre (0.039 in) up to 14 centimetres (5.5 in). [5] Some larvae of the order Hymenoptera (ants, bees, and wasps) can appear like the caterpillars of the Lepidoptera.
These flying insects reach their largest size in Palparellus voeltzkowi, which can have a wingspan over 16 cm (6.3 in). [40] The largest lacewing is the Australian "blue eyes lacewing" (Nymphes myrmeleonides), which can measure up to 4 cm (1.6 in) in length and span 11 cm (4.3 in) across the wings. [41]
Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their life cycle, the stages thereof being egg, larva, pupa, and imago. The processes of entering and completing the pupal stage are controlled by the insect's hormones, especially juvenile hormone, prothoracicotropic hormone, and ecdysone. The act ...
In his writing, Harvey hypothesized that the pupal stage in insects was the result of imperfect eggs. [2] While some eggs produced smaller versions of fully-matured insects known as nymphs, others created intermediate forms. Thus, these intermediate forms must go through a second egg stage to reach their adult form.