93-466: See text. Lobopoda is a genus of comb-clawed beetles in the family Tenebrionidae . The type species is Lobopoda striata . The following subgenera of Lobopoda have been described: This Tenebrionidae -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Beetle See subgroups of the order Coleoptera Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera ( / k oʊ l iː ˈ ɒ p t ər ə / ), in
186-421: A "surprisingly narrow range" spanning all four estimates from a minimum of 0.9 to a maximum of 2.1 million beetle species. The four estimates made use of host-specificity relationships (1.5 to 1.9 million), ratios with other taxa (0.9 to 1.2 million), plant:beetle ratios (1.2 to 1.3), and extrapolations based on body size by year of description (1.7 to 2.1 million). This immense diversity led
279-577: A bad weed when it out-competes cultivated plants. A different group of weeds consists of those that are invasive, introduced, often unintentionally, to habitats to which they are not native but in which they thrive. Without their original competitors, herbivores, and diseases, they may increase and become a serious nuisance. One such plant is purple loosestrife , a native of Europe and Asia where it occurs in ditches, wet meadows and marshes; introduced into North America, it has no natural enemies to keep it in check and has taken over vast tracts of wetlands to
372-448: A beetle is quite uniform, although specific organs and appendages vary greatly in appearance and function between the many families in the order. Like all insects, beetles' bodies are divided into three sections: the head, the thorax, and the abdomen. Because there are so many species, identification is quite difficult, and relies on attributes including the shape of the antennae, the tarsal formulae and shapes of these small segments on
465-475: A beetle's environment. Beetle families may use antennae in different ways. For example, when moving quickly, tiger beetles may not be able to see very well and instead hold their antennae rigidly in front of them in order to avoid obstacles. Certain Cerambycidae use antennae to balance, and blister beetles may use them for grasping. Some aquatic beetle species may use antennae for gathering air and passing it under
558-744: A few fossils from North America before the middle Permian , although both Asia and North America had been united to Euramerica . The first discoveries from North America made in the Wellington Formation of Oklahoma were published in 2005 and 2008. The earliest members of modern beetle lineages appeared during the Late Permian . In the Permian–Triassic extinction event at the end of the Permian, most "protocoleopteran" lineages became extinct. Beetle diversity did not recover to pre-extinction levels until
651-406: A mass of at least 115 g (4.1 oz) and a length of 11.5 cm (4.5 in). Adult male goliath beetles are the heaviest beetle in its adult stage, weighing 70–100 g (2.5–3.5 oz) and measuring up to 11 cm (4.3 in). Adult elephant beetles , Megasoma elephas and Megasoma actaeon often reach 50 g (1.8 oz) and 10 cm (3.9 in). The longest beetle
744-419: A means to disperse. The nematodes (eelworms) that attack plants are minute, often too small to be seen with the naked eye, but their presence is often apparent in the galls or "knots" they form in plant tissues. Vast numbers of nematodes are found in soil and attack roots, but others affect stems, buds, leaves, flowers and fruits. High infestations cause stunting, deformation and retardation of plant growth, and
837-456: A mobile tooth on their left mandible. The consistency of beetle morphology , in particular their possession of elytra , has long suggested that Coleoptera is monophyletic , though there have been doubts about the arrangement of the suborders , namely the Adephaga , Archostemata , Myxophaga and Polyphaga within that clade . The twisted-wing parasites, Strepsiptera , are thought to be
930-532: A nuisance around buildings, roadsides and recreation areas because of its uncomfortably sharp spiny burrs . Disease-causing pathogens such as fungi , oomycetes , bacteria , and viruses can cause damage to crops and garden plants. The term "plant pest", mainly applied to insect micropredators of plants, has a specific definition in terms of the International Plant Protection Convention and phytosanitary measures worldwide. A pest
1023-484: A particularly hard exoskeleton and hard forewings ( elytra ) not usable for flying. Almost all beetles have mandibles that move in a horizontal plane. The mouthparts are rarely suctorial, though they are sometimes reduced; the maxillae always bear palps. The antennae usually have 11 or fewer segments, except in some groups like the Cerambycidae (longhorn beetles) and the Rhipiceridae (cicada parasite beetles). The coxae of
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#17331254438111116-430: A pest is a competitor to humanity. Pests include plants, pathogens, invertebrates, vertebrates, or any organism that harms an ecosystem. Animals are considered pests or vermin when they injure people or damage crops, forestry, or buildings. Elephants are regarded as pests by the farmers whose crops they raid and trample. Mosquitoes and ticks are vectors that can transmit ailments but are also pests because of
1209-404: A pest plant "any plant that, in the local government authority's opinion, is likely to adversely affect the environment of the district, the value of property in the district, or the health, comfort or convenience of the district's inhabitants." An example of such a plant prescribed under this regulation is caltrop, Tribulus terrestris , which can cause poisoning in sheep and goats, but is mainly
1302-507: A pest when it tramples crops. Some animals are disliked because they bite or sting; wolves , snakes , wasps , ants , bed bugs , fleas and ticks belong in this category. Others enter the home; these include houseflies, which land on and contaminate food; beetles, which tunnel into the woodwork; and other animals that scuttle about on the floor at night, like rats and cockroaches , which are often associated with unsanitary conditions. Agricultural and horticultural crops are attacked by
1395-591: A series of conspicuous and relatively abrupt changes in body structure between hatching and becoming adult after a relatively immobile pupal stage. Some, such as stag beetles , have a marked sexual dimorphism , the males possessing enormously enlarged mandibles which they use to fight other males. Many beetles are aposematic , with bright colors and patterns warning of their toxicity, while others are harmless Batesian mimics of such insects. Many beetles, including those that live in sandy places, have effective camouflage . Beetles are prominent in human culture , from
1488-678: A sister group to the beetles, having split from them in the Early Permian . Molecular phylogenetic analysis confirms that the Coleoptera are monophyletic. Duane McKenna et al. (2015) used eight nuclear genes for 367 species from 172 of 183 Coleopteran families. They split the Adephaga into 2 clades, Hydradephaga and Geadephaga, broke up the Cucujoidea into 3 clades, and placed the Lymexyloidea within
1581-408: A string of beads , comb-like (either on one side or both, bipectinate), or toothed . The physical variation of antennae is important for the identification of many beetle groups. The Curculionidae have elbowed or geniculate antennae. Feather like flabellate antennae are a restricted form found in the Rhipiceridae and a few other families. The Silphidae have a capitate antennae with a spherical head at
1674-399: A suitable stocking density, and minimizing injury and stress to trees. Pest control in buildings can be approached in several ways, depending on the type of pest and the area affected. Methods include improving sanitation and garbage control, modifying the habitat, and using repellents, growth regulators, traps, baits and pesticides. For example, the pesticide Boron can be impregnated into
1767-518: A thick cuticle or waxy deposits, with the second line of defence being toxic or distasteful secondary metabolites . Mechanical injury to the plant tissues allows the entry of pathogens and stimulates the plant to mobilise its chemical defences. The plant soon seals off the wound to reduce further damage. Plants sometimes take active steps to reduce herbivory. Macaranga triloba for example has adapted its thin-walled stems to create ideal housing for an ant Crematogaster spp., which, in turn, protects
1860-405: A wide variety of pests, the most important being rodents , insects , mites , nematodes and gastropod molluscs . The damage they do results both from the direct injury they cause to the plants and from the indirect consequences of the fungal, bacterial or viral infections they transmit. Plants have their own defences against these attacks but these may be overwhelmed, especially in habitats where
1953-423: Is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation; the term has no botanical significance. Often, weeds are simply those native plants that are adapted to grow in disturbed ground, the disturbance caused by ploughing and cultivation favouring them over other species. Any plant is a weed if it appears in a location where it is unwanted; Bermuda grass makes a good lawn plant under hot dry conditions but become
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#17331254438112046-444: Is any organism harmful to humans or human concerns. The term is particularly used for creatures that damage crops, livestock, and forestry or cause a nuisance to people, especially in their homes. Humans have modified the environment for their own purposes and are intolerant of other creatures occupying the same space when their activities impact adversely on human objectives. Thus, an elephant is unobjectionable in its natural habitat but
2139-492: Is any species, strain or biotype of plant, animal, or pathogenic agent injurious to plants or plant products. Worldwide, agricultural pest impacts are increased by higher degrees of interconnectedness. This is due to the increased risk that any particular pest problem anywhere in the world (as a system ) will propagate across the entire system. Plants have developed strategies that they use in their own defence, be they thorns (modified stems) or spines (modified leaves), stings,
2232-484: Is as agricultural, forestry, and horticultural pests . Serious pest species include the boll weevil of cotton, the Colorado potato beetle , the coconut hispine beetle , the mountain pine beetle , and many others. Most beetles, however, do not cause economic damage and some, such as numerous species of lady beetles , are beneficial by helping to control insect pests. The name of the taxonomic order, Coleoptera, comes from
2325-438: Is found, from trees and their bark to flowers, leaves, and underground near roots - even inside plants in galls, in every plant tissue, including dead or decaying ones. Tropical forest canopies have a large and diverse fauna of beetles, including Carabidae , Chrysomelidae , and Scarabaeidae . The heaviest beetle, indeed the heaviest insect stage, is the larva of the goliath beetle , Goliathus goliatus , which can attain
2418-543: Is the Hercules beetle Dynastes hercules , with a maximum overall length of at least 16.7 cm (6.6 in) including the very long pronotal horn. The smallest recorded beetle and the smallest free-living insect (as of 2015 ), is the featherwing beetle Scydosella musawasensis which may measure as little as 325 μm in length. The oldest known beetle is Coleopsis , from the earliest Permian ( Asselian ) of Germany, around 295 million years ago. Early beetles from
2511-691: Is the case with the emerald ash borer , an insect native to north-eastern Asia, which, since its arrival in North America, has killed millions of ash trees. Another example of a beetle species that exhibits pest behavior are Melolontha Hippocastrani , that cause severe, long-term damage on young trees by feeding on roots. Animals able to live in the dry conditions found in buildings include many arthropods such as beetles, cockroaches, moths, and mites. Another group, including termites , woodworm , longhorn beetles , and wood ants cause structural damage to buildings and furniture. The natural habitat of these
2604-424: Is the decaying parts of trees. The deathwatch beetle infests the structural timbers of old buildings, mostly attacking hardwood , especially oak . The initial attack usually follows the entry of water into a building and the subsequent decay of damp timber. Furniture beetles mainly attack the sapwood of both hard and soft wood , only attacking the heartwood when it is modified by fungal decay. The presence of
2697-437: Is the largest suborder, containing more than 300,000 described species in more than 170 families, including rove beetles (Staphylinidae), scarab beetles ( Scarabaeidae ), blister beetles (Meloidae), stag beetles (Lucanidae) and true weevils ( Curculionidae ). These polyphagan beetle groups can be identified by the presence of cervical sclerites (hardened parts of the head used as points of attachment for muscles) absent in
2790-425: The Colorado potato beetle , while others such as Coccinellidae (ladybirds or ladybugs) eat aphids , scale insects , thrips , and other plant-sucking insects that damage crops. Some others also have unusual characteristics, such as fireflies , which use a light-emitting organ for mating and communication purposes. Beetles typically have a particularly hard exoskeleton including the elytra , though some such as
2883-814: The Dytiscidae (diving beetles) , Haliplidae , and many species of Hydrophilidae , the legs, often the last pair, are modified for swimming, typically with rows of long hairs. Male diving beetles have suctorial cups on their forelegs that they use to grasp females. Other beetles have fossorial legs widened and often spined for digging. Species with such adaptations are found among the scarabs, ground beetles, and clown beetles ( Histeridae ). The hind legs of some beetles, such as flea beetles (within Chrysomelidae) and flea weevils (within Curculionidae), have enlarged femurs that help them leap. Pest (organism) A pest
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2976-521: The Greek koleopteros (κολεόπτερος), given to the group by Aristotle for their elytra , hardened shield-like forewings, from koleos , sheath, and pteron , wing. The English name beetle comes from the Old English word bitela , little biter, related to bītan (to bite), leading to Middle English betylle . Another Old English name for beetle is ċeafor , chafer, used in names such as cockchafer , from
3069-640: The Middle Triassic . During the Jurassic ( 210 to 145 mya ), there was a dramatic increase in the diversity of beetle families, including the development and growth of carnivorous and herbivorous species. The Chrysomeloidea diversified around the same time, feeding on a wide array of plant hosts from cycads and conifers to angiosperms . Close to the Upper Jurassic, the Cupedidae decreased, but
3162-635: The drugstore beetle , the sawtoothed grain beetle and the Indianmeal moth being found worldwide. The insects may be present in the warehouse or maybe introduced during shipping, in retail outlets, or in the home; they may enter packets through tiny cracks or may chew holes in the packaging. The longer a product is stored, the more likely it is to become contaminated, with the insects often originating from dry pet foods. Some mites, too, infest foodstuffs and other stored products. Each substance has its own specific mite, and they multiply with great rapidity. One of
3255-400: The rove beetles have very short elytra while blister beetles have softer elytra. The general anatomy of a beetle is quite uniform and typical of insects, although there are several examples of novelty, such as adaptations in water beetles which trap air bubbles under the elytra for use while diving. Beetles are holometabolans , which means that they undergo complete metamorphosis , with
3348-431: The sacred scarabs of ancient Egypt to beetlewing art and use as pets or fighting insects for entertainment and gambling. Many beetle groups are brightly and attractively colored making them objects of collection and decorative displays. Over 300 species are used as food , mostly as larvae ; species widely consumed include mealworms and rhinoceros beetle larvae. However, the major impact of beetles on human life
3441-415: The telephone-pole beetle . The Archostemata have an exposed plate called the metatrochantin in front of the basal segment or coxa of the hind leg. Myxophaga contains about 65 described species in four families, mostly very small, including Hydroscaphidae and the genus Sphaerius . The myxophagan beetles are small and mostly alga-feeders. Their mouthparts are characteristic in lacking galeae and having
3534-429: The 10th century Greek monk Tryphon of Constantinople is said to have prayed "Snails, earwigs and all other creatures, hurt not the vines, nor the land nor the fruit of the trees, nor the vegetables ... but depart into the wild mountains." The 11th-century Old English medical text Lacnunga contained charms and spells to ward off or treat pests such as wid smeogan wyrme , " penetrating worms ", in this case requiring
3627-674: The Cretaceous. The first scarab beetles were not coprophagous but presumably fed on rotting wood with the help of fungus; they are an early example of a mutualistic relationship. There are more than 150 important fossil sites from the Jurassic, the majority in Eastern Europe and North Asia. Outstanding sites include Solnhofen in Upper Bavaria , Germany, Karatau in South Kazakhstan ,
3720-559: The Permian, which are collectively grouped into the " Protocoleoptera " are thought to have been xylophagous (wood eating) and wood boring . Fossils from this time have been found in Siberia and Europe, for instance in the red slate fossil beds of Niedermoschel near Mainz, Germany. Further fossils have been found in Obora, Czech Republic and Tshekarda in the Ural mountains, Russia. However, there are only
3813-476: The Proto-Germanic * kebrô ("beetle"; compare German Käfer , Dutch kever , Afrikaans kewer ). Beetles are by far the largest order of insects: the roughly 400,000 species make up about 40% of all insect species so far described, and about 25% of all animal species. A 2015 study provided four independent estimates of the total number of beetle species, giving a mean estimate of some 1.5 million with
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3906-656: The Quaternary caused beetles to change their geographic distributions so much that current location gives little clue to the biogeographical history of a species. It is evident that geographic isolation of populations must often have been broken as insects moved under the influence of changing climate, causing mixing of gene pools, rapid evolution, and extinctions, especially in middle latitudes. The very large number of beetle species poses special problems for classification . Some families contain tens of thousands of species, and need to be divided into subfamilies and tribes. Polyphaga
3999-1997: The Tenebrionoidea. The Polyphaga appear to date from the Triassic. Most extant beetle families appear to have arisen in the Cretaceous. The cladogram is based on McKenna (2015). The number of species in each group (mainly superfamilies) is shown in parentheses, and boldface if over 10,000. English common names are given where possible. Dates of origin of major groups are shown in italics in millions of years ago (mya). Archostemata 160 mya (40) [REDACTED] Myxophaga 220 mya (94) [REDACTED] Hydradephaga (5,560) e.g. Dytiscidae (diving beetles) [REDACTED] Geadephaga ( 35,000 ) e.g. Carabidae (ground beetles) [REDACTED] Scirtoidea (800) + Derodontoidea (29) 200 mya [REDACTED] Staphylinidae 195 mya ( 48,000 , rove beetles) [REDACTED] Scarabaeoidea 145 mya ( 35,000 , scarabs, stag beetles, etc.) [REDACTED] Hydrophiloidea (2,800, water scavenger beetles) [REDACTED] Histeroidea (3,800, clown beetles) [REDACTED] Nosodendridae (70) Dascilloidea (180) [REDACTED] Buprestoidea ( 14,000 , jewel beetles) [REDACTED] Byrrhoidea (400, pill and turtle beetles, etc.) [REDACTED] Elateroidea ( 23,000 , click and soldier beetles, fireflies) [REDACTED] Bostrichoidea (3150, deathwatch, powderpost and skin beetles) [REDACTED] Coccinelloidea (6,000, ladybirds or lady beetles) [REDACTED] Tenebrionoidea 180 mya ( 35,000 , leaf/flower beetles, etc.) and Lymexyloidea [REDACTED] Cleroidea (9,900, checkered beetles and allies) [REDACTED] Cucujoidea (8,000) [REDACTED] Chrysomelidae ( 35,000 , leaf beetles) [REDACTED] Cerambycidae ( 25,000 , longhorn beetles) [REDACTED] Curculionoidea ( 97,000 , weevils) [REDACTED] Beetles are generally characterized by
4092-726: The Upper Cretaceous include Kzyl-Dzhar in South Kazakhstan and Arkagala in Russia. Beetle fossils are abundant in the Cenozoic; by the Quaternary (up to 1.6 mya), fossil species are identical to living ones, while from the Late Miocene (5.7 mya) the fossils are still so close to modern forms that they are most likely the ancestors of living species. The large oscillations in climate during
4185-763: The Yixian formation in Liaoning , North China, as well as the Jiulongshan formation and further fossil sites in Mongolia . In North America there are only a few sites with fossil records of insects from the Jurassic, namely the shell limestone deposits in the Hartford basin, the Deerfield basin and the Newark basin. The Cretaceous saw the fragmenting of the southern landmass, with the opening of
4278-609: The ants. Pest ranges are heavily determined by climate . The most common example for the longest time has been rainfall : Although drought stress weakens crop disease resistance , drought also retards contagion and infection; and some variability in precipitation is universal. More recently climate change has been rapidly altering ranges, mostly by pushing them towards the poles (both North and South ). From 1960-2013 ranges have shifted poleward by 2.7 ± 0.8 km (1.68 ± 0.50 mi) per year - albeit with significant differences between taxa . (Especially in
4371-456: The aquatic whirligig beetles ( Gyrinidae ), where they are split to allow a view both above and below the waterline. A few Longhorn beetles ( Cerambycidae ) and weevils as well as some fireflies ( Rhagophthalmidae ) have divided eyes, while many have eyes that are notched, and a few have ocelli , small, simple eyes usually farther back on the head (on the vertex ); these are more common in larvae than in adults. The anatomical organization of
4464-447: The back part of the thorax is concealed by the beetle's wings . This further segmentation is usually best seen on the abdomen. The multisegmented legs end in two to five small segments called tarsi. Like many other insect orders, beetles have claws, usually one pair, on the end of the last tarsal segment of each leg. While most beetles use their legs for walking, legs have been variously adapted for other uses. Aquatic beetles including
4557-631: The bark of trees together with the jewel beetles (Buprestidae). The diversity of jewel beetles increased rapidly, as they were the primary consumers of wood, while longhorn beetles ( Cerambycidae ) were rather rare: their diversity increased only towards the end of the Upper Cretaceous. The first coprophagous beetles are from the Upper Cretaceous and may have lived on the excrement of herbivorous dinosaurs. The first species where both larvae and adults are adapted to an aquatic lifestyle are found. Whirligig beetles (Gyrinidae) were moderately diverse, although other early beetles (e.g. Dytiscidae) were less, with
4650-474: The beetles only becomes apparent when the larvae gnaw their way out, leaving small circular holes in the timber. Carpet beetles and clothes moths cause non-structural damage to property such as clothing and carpets. It is the larvae that are destructive, feeding on wool, hair, fur, feathers and down. The moth larvae live where they feed, but the beetle larvae may hide behind skirting boards or in other similar locations between meals. They may be introduced to
4743-622: The birth of civilisation. Plagues of locusts caused devastation in the ancient Middle East, and were recorded in tombs in Ancient Egypt from as early as 2470 BC, and in the Book of Exodus in the Bible, as taking place in Egypt around 1446 BC. Homer 's Iliad mentions locusts taking to the wing to escape fire. Given the impact of agricultural pests on human lives, people have prayed for deliverance. For example,
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#17331254438114836-433: The body whilst submerged. Equally, some families use antennae during mating, and a few species use them for defense. In the cerambycid Onychocerus albitarsis , the antennae have venom injecting structures used in defense, which is unique among arthropods . Antennae vary greatly in form, sometimes between the sexes, but are often similar within any given family. Antennae may be clubbed , threadlike , angled , shaped like
4929-510: The case of viruses and nematodes which show the opposite trend, toward the equator . This may be due to their lack of airborne dispersal , so their trend conforms with the trend of human-aided dispersal ; or identification difficulties in the field.) In Europe, crop pests are expected to burgeon as the vertebrate predators which control them are expected to be suppressed by future climatic conditions. Together pests and diseases cause up to 40% yield losses every year. The animal groups of
5022-543: The compound eyes may be modified and depends on whether a species is primarily crepuscular, or diurnally or nocturnally active. Ocelli are found in the adult carpet beetle (as a single central ocellus in Dermestidae ), some rove beetles ( Omaliinae ), and the Derodontidae . Beetle antennae are primarily organs of sensory perception and can detect motion, odor and chemical substances, but may also be used to physically feel
5115-455: The cooling systems of power and desalination plants which draw their water from the sea. Many of the animals that we regard as pests live in our homes. Before humans built dwellings, these creatures lived in the wider environment, but co-evolved with humans, adapting to the warm, sheltered conditions that a house provides, the wooden timbers, the furnishings, the food supplies and the rubbish dumps. Many no longer exist as free-living organisms in
5208-416: The damage done by molluscs becomes of greater significance. Terrestrial molluscs need moist environments; snails may be more noticeable because their shells provide protection from desiccation, while most slugs live in soil and only come out to feed at night. They devour seedlings, damage developing shoots and feed on salad crops and cabbages, and some species tunnel into potatoes and other tubers. A weed
5301-408: The difficulty of examining entire trees, and the certainty that pesticides would damage many forest organisms other than the intended pests. Forest integrated pest management therefore aims to use a combination of prevention, cultural control measures, and direct control (such as pesticide use). Cultural measures include choosing appropriate species, keeping competing vegetation under control, ensuring
5394-494: The distress caused by their bites. Grasshoppers are usually solitary herbivores of little economic importance until the conditions are met for them to enter a swarming phase , become locusts and cause enormous damage. Many people appreciate birds in the countryside and their gardens, but when these accumulate in large masses, they can be a nuisance. Flocks of starlings can consist of hundreds of thousands of individual birds, their roosts can be noisy and their droppings voluminous;
5487-644: The diversity of the early plant-eating species increased. Most recent plant-eating beetles feed on flowering plants or angiosperms, whose success contributed to a doubling of plant-eating species during the Middle Jurassic . However, the increase of the number of beetle families during the Cretaceous does not correlate with the increase of the number of angiosperm species. Around the same time, numerous primitive weevils (e.g. Curculionoidea ) and click beetles (e.g. Elateroidea ) appeared. The first jewel beetles (e.g. Buprestidae ) are present, but they remained rare until
5580-715: The droppings are acidic and can cause corrosion of metals, stonework, and brickwork as well as being unsightly. Pigeons in urban settings may be a health hazard, and gulls near the coast can become a nuisance, especially if they become bold enough to snatch food from passers-by. All birds are a risk at airfields where they can be sucked into aircraft engines. Woodpeckers sometimes excavate holes in buildings, fencing and utility poles, causing structural damage; they also drum on various reverberatory structures on buildings such as gutters, down-spouts, chimneys, vents and aluminium sheeting. Jellyfish can form vast swarms which may be responsible for damage to fishing gear, and sometimes clog
5673-583: The evolutionary biologist J. B. S. Haldane to quip, when some theologians asked him what could be inferred about the mind of the Christian God from the works of His Creation, "An inordinate fondness for beetles". However, the ranking of beetles as most diverse has been challenged. Multiple studies posit that Diptera (flies) and/or Hymenoptera (sawflies, wasps, ants and bees) may have more species. Beetles are found in nearly all habitats, including freshwater and coastal habitats, wherever vegetative foliage
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#17331254438115766-630: The exclusion of native species. In forestry, pests may affect various parts of the tree, from its roots and trunk to the canopy far overhead. The accessibility of the part of the tree affected may make detection difficult, so that a pest problem may already be far advanced before it is first observed from the ground. The larch sawfly and spruce budworm are two insect pests prevalent in Alaska and aerial surveys can show which sections of forest are being defoliated in any given year so that appropriate remedial action can be taken. Some pests may not be present on
5859-764: The fibres of cellulose insulation to kill self-grooming insects such as ants and cockroaches. Clothes moths can be controlled with airtight containers for storage, periodic laundering of garments, trapping, freezing, heating and the use of chemicals. Traditional mothballs deter adult moths with strong-smelling naphthalene ; modern ones use volatile repellents such as 1,4-Dichlorobenzene . Moth larvae can be killed with insecticides such as permethrin or pyrethroids . However, insecticides cannot safely be used in food storage areas; alternative treatments include freezing foods for four days at 0 °F (−18 °C) or baking for half an hour at 130 °F (54 °C) to kill any insects present. Pests have attracted human attention from
5952-440: The first part is called the scape and the second part is the pedicel. The other segments are jointly called the flagellum. Beetles have mouthparts like those of grasshoppers . The mandibles appear as large pincers on the front of some beetles. The mandibles are a pair of hard, often tooth-like structures that move horizontally to grasp, crush, or cut food or enemies (see defence , below). Two pairs of finger-like appendages,
6045-560: The general collection. There are over four thousand species of cockroach worldwide, but only four species are commonly regarded as pests, having adapted to live permanently in buildings. Considered to be a sign of unsanitary conditions, they feed on almost anything, reproduce rapidly and are difficult to eradicate. They can passively transport pathogenic microbes on their body surfaces, particularly in environments such as hospitals, and are linked with allergic reactions in humans. Various insects attack dry food products, with flour beetles ,
6138-401: The greatest importance as agricultural pests are (in order of economic importance) insects , mites , nematodes and gastropod molluscs . Insects are responsible for two major forms of damage to crops. First, there is the direct injury they cause to the plants as they feed on the tissues; a reduction in leaf surface available for photosynthesis, distortion of growing shoots, a diminution of
6231-527: The home in any product containing animal fibres including upholstered furniture; the moths are feeble fliers but the carpet beetles may also enter houses through open windows. Furniture beetles, carpet beetles and clothes moths are also capable of creating great damage to museum exhibits, zoological and botanical collections, and other cultural heritage items. Constant vigilance is required to prevent an attack, and newly acquired items, and those that have been out on loan, may need quarantining before being added to
6324-431: The legs are usually located recessed within a coxal cavity. The genitalic structures are telescoped into the last abdominal segment in all extant beetles. Beetle larvae can often be confused with those of other holometabolan groups. The beetle's exoskeleton is made up of numerous plates, called sclerites , separated by thin sutures. This design provides armored defenses while maintaining flexibility. The general anatomy of
6417-407: The legs, the mouthparts, and the ventral plates (sterna, pleura, coxae). In many species accurate identification can only be made by examination of the unique male genitalic structures. The head, having mouthparts projecting forward or sometimes downturned, is usually heavily sclerotized and is sometimes very large. The eyes are compound and may display remarkable adaptability, as in the case of
6510-489: The maxillary and labial palpi, are found around the mouth in most beetles, serving to move food into the mouth. In many species, the mandibles are sexually dimorphic, with those of the males enlarged enormously compared with those of females of the same species. The thorax is segmented into the two discernible parts, the pro- and pterothorax. The pterothorax is the fused meso- and metathorax, which are commonly separated in other insect species, although flexibly articulate from
6603-662: The most damaging is the flour mite , which is found in grain and may become exceedingly abundant in poorly stored material. In time, predatory mites usually move in and control the flour mites. The control of pests in crops is as old as civilisation. The earliest approach was mechanical, from ploughing to picking off insects by hand. Early methods included the use of sulphur compounds, before 2500 BC in Sumeria. In ancient China, insecticides derived from plants were in use by 1200 BC to treat seeds and to fumigate plants. Chinese agronomy recognised biological control by natural enemies of pests and
6696-485: The most widespread being the species of Coptoclavidae , which preyed on aquatic fly larvae. A 2020 review of the palaeoecological interpretations of fossil beetles from Cretaceous ambers has suggested that saproxylicity was the most common feeding strategy, with fungivorous species in particular appearing to dominate. Many fossil sites worldwide contain beetles from the Cretaceous. Most are in Europe and Asia and belong to
6789-680: The nematodes can transmit viral diseases from one plant to another. When its populations are high, the potato cyst nematode can cause reductions of 80% in yield of susceptible potato varieties. The nematode eggs survive in the soil for many years, being stimulated to hatch by chemical cues produced by roots of susceptible plants. Slugs and snails are terrestrial gastropod molluscs which typically chew leaves, stems, flowers, fruit and vegetable debris. Slugs and snails differ little from each other and both do considerable damage to plants. With novel crops being grown and with insect pests having been brought more under control by biological and other means,
6882-409: The number of beetle species is challenged by the number of species in dipterans (flies) and hymenopterans (wasps). Found in almost every habitat except the sea and the polar regions , they interact with their ecosystems in several ways: beetles often feed on plants and fungi , break down animal and plant debris, and eat other invertebrates . Some species are serious agricultural pests, such as
6975-441: The open for brief periods as adults, primarily to mate and disperse. The import and export of timber has inadvertently assisted some insect pests to establish themselves far from their country of origin. An insect may be of little importance in its native range, being kept under control by parasitoid wasps, predators, and the natural resistance of the host trees, but be a serious pest in a region into which it has been introduced. This
7068-490: The other suborders. Adephaga contains about 10 families of largely predatory beetles, includes ground beetles (Carabidae), water beetles ( Dytiscidae ) and whirligig beetles (Gyrinidae). In these insects, the testes are tubular and the first abdominal sternum (a plate of the exoskeleton ) is divided by the hind coxae (the basal joints of the beetle's legs). Archostemata contains four families of mainly wood-eating beetles, including reticulated beetles (Cupedidae) and
7161-532: The outside world, and can therefore be considered to be domesticated. The St Kilda house mouse rapidly became extinct when the last islander left the island of St Kilda, Scotland in 1930, but the St Kilda field mouse survived. Plants may be considered pests, for example, if they are invasive species or weeds . There is no universal definition of what makes a plant a pest. Some governments, such as that of Western Australia, permit their authorities to prescribe as
7254-452: The plant from herbivores. In addition to providing housing, the plant also provides the ant with its exclusive food source in the form of food bodies located on the leaf stipules. Similarly, several Acacia tree species have developed stout spines that are swollen at the base, forming a hollow structure that provides housing for ants which protect the plant. These Acacia trees also produce nectar in nectaries on their leaves as food for
7347-417: The plant's growth and vigour, and the wilting of shoots and branches caused by the insects' tunneling activities. Secondly there is the indirect damage, where the insects do little direct harm, but either transmit or allow entry of fungal, bacterial or viral infections. Although some insects are polyphagous, many are restricted to one specific crop, or group of crops. In many cases it is the larva that feeds on
7440-456: The plant, building up a nutritional store that will be used by the short-lived adult; sawfly and lepidopteran larvae feed mainly on the aerial portions of plants while beetle larvae tend to live underground, feeding on roots, or tunnel into the stem or under the bark. The true bugs, Hemiptera , have piercing and sucking mouthparts and live by sucking sap from plants. These include aphids , whiteflies and scale insects . Apart from weakening
7533-442: The plant, they encourage the growth of sooty mould on the honeydew the insects produce, which cuts out the light and reduces photosynthesis, stunting the plant's growth. They often transmit serious viral diseases between plants. The mites that cause most trouble in the field are the spider mites . These are less than 1 mm (0.04 in) in diameter, can be very numerous, and thrive in hot, dry conditions. They mostly live on
7626-413: The plants are already stressed, or where the pests have been accidentally introduced and may have no natural enemies. The pests affecting trees are predominantly insects, and many of these have also been introduced inadvertently and lack natural enemies, and some have transmitted novel fungal diseases with devastating results. Humans have traditionally performed pest control in agriculture and forestry by
7719-410: The prothorax. When viewed from below, the thorax is that part from which all three pairs of legs and both pairs of wings arise. The abdomen is everything posterior to the thorax. When viewed from above, most beetles appear to have three clear sections, but this is deceptive: on the beetle's upper surface, the middle section is a hard plate called the pronotum , which is only the front part of the thorax;
7812-407: The roots or the aerial parts of plants and transmit viruses. Some examples are the big bud mite that transmits the reversion virus of blackcurrants , the coconut mite which can devastate coconut production, and the cereal rust mite which transmits several grass and cereal viruses. Being exceedingly minute, many plant mites are spread by wind, although others use insects or other arthropods as
7905-404: The second half of the 19th century, starting with the vedalia beetle against cottony cushion scale . All these methods have been refined and developed since their discovery. Forest pests inflict costly damage, but treating them is often unaffordable, given the relatively low value of forest products compared to agricultural crops. It is also generally impossible to eradicate forest pests, given
7998-652: The southern Atlantic Ocean and the isolation of New Zealand, while South America, Antarctica, and Australia grew more distant. The diversity of Cupedidae and Archostemata decreased considerably. Predatory ground beetles (Carabidae) and rove beetles (Staphylinidae) began to distribute into different patterns; the Carabidae predominantly occurred in the warm regions, while the Staphylinidae and click beetles (Elateridae) preferred temperate climates. Likewise, predatory species of Cleroidea and Cucujoidea hunted their prey under
8091-440: The superorder Holometabola . Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra , distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 described species, is the largest of all orders, constituting almost 40% of described insects and 25% of all known animal species; new species are discovered frequently, with estimates suggesting that there are between 0.9 and 2.1 million total species. However,
8184-678: The temperate climate zone during the Cretaceous. Lower Cretaceous sites include the Crato fossil beds in the Araripe basin in the Ceará , North Brazil, as well as overlying Santana formation; the latter was near the equator at that time. In Spain, important sites are near Montsec and Las Hoyas . In Australia, the Koonwarra fossil beds of the Korumburra group, South Gippsland , Victoria, are noteworthy. Major sites from
8277-478: The tip. The Scarabaeidae typically have lamellate antennae with the terminal segments extended into long flat structures stacked together. The Carabidae typically have thread-like antennae. The antennae arises between the eye and the mandibles and in the Tenebrionidae, the antennae rise in front of a notch that breaks the usually circular outline of the compound eye. They are segmented and usually consist of 11 parts,
8370-455: The tree all year round, either because of their life cycle or because they rotate between different host species at different times of the year. In forestry, pests may affect various parts of the tree, from its roots and trunk to the canopy far overhead. The larvae of wood-boring beetles , for example, are notorious for spending years excavating tunnels under the bark of trees, leading to significant structural damage. These larvae only emerge into
8463-448: The underside of leaves and puncture the plant cells to feed, with some species forming webbing. They occur on nearly all important food crops and ornamental plants, both outdoors and under glass, and include some of the most economically important pests. Another important group of mites is the gall mites which affect a wide range of plants, several mite species being major pests causing substantial economic damage to crops. They can feed on
8556-470: The use of pesticides ; however, other methods exist such as mechanical control , and recently developed biological controls . A pest is any living thing which humans consider troublesome to themselves, their possessions, or the environment. Pests can cause issues with crops, human or animal health, buildings, and wild areas or larger landscapes. An older usage of the word "pest" is of a deadly epidemic disease, specifically plague . In its broadest sense,
8649-637: The varying of planting time to reduce pests before the first century AD. The agricultural revolution in Europe saw the introduction of effective plant-based insecticides such as pyrethrum , derris , quassia , and tobacco extract. The phylloxera (a powdery mildew ) damage to the wine industry in the 19th century resulted in the development of resistant varieties and grafting , and the accidental discovery of effective chemical pesticides, Bordeaux mixture (lime and copper sulphate ) and Paris Green (an arsenic compound), both very widely used. Biological control also became established as an effective measure in
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