Insect Mouthparts and Antennae

Lecture 2
Phylum Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Prof. Dr. Badr El-Sabah / Lecture2 1

Abdominal Appendages
(Head- Thorax- Abdomen)
2Prof. Dr. Badr El-Sabah / Lecture2

4
•Compound Eyes (C) -
made up of many small lenses,
called ommatidia.
•Purpose: detect movement,
light intensity and color.
•Simple Eyes (S) -
“ocelli”
Insects have 0-3 simple eyes.
Purpose: detect light intensity.
Head appendages – 1-Eyes
C
C
Prof. Dr. Badr El-Sabah / Lecture2

5
IIIIInsect Head – 2- Antennae
• Insects have one pair of antennae.
• May have the function of touch, smell, and in
some cases, hearing.
• Used for navigation, food location, grasping (in
some species)
• Used for detection of:
• temperature
• chemicals produced by plants or other foods
• chemicals produced by other members of their
species (pheromones)

6
Insect Head – 2-Antennae
• Shape, number, and size of the segments are frequently used for
identification.
• The overall appearance of the antennae are also used in identification.
plumose
lamellate serrate filiform
geniculate

antennae
The antennae are a pair of sense organs located near
the front of an insect's head capsule. Although
commonly called "feelers", the antennae are much
more than just tactile receptors. They are usually
covered with olfactory receptors that can detect
odor molecules in the air (the sense of smell). Many
insects also use their antennae as humidity sensors,
to detect changes in the concentration of water
vapor. Mosquitoes detect sounds with their
antennae, and many flies use theirs to gauge air
speed while they are in flight.

Antennal Segments

Types of Antennae
a. and f. Filiform –thread-like h. Geniculate –elbowed
b. Moniliform –bead-like i. Lamellate –plate-like
c. Setaceous –hair-like g. Capitate – head-like (less enlarged
at the tip would be clavate –clublike
d. Serrate –sawtoothed j. Plumose –plumed or feather-like
e. Pectinate –comb-like 9Prof. Dr. Badr El-Sabah / Lecture2

Setaceous --
bristle-like
Dragon fly
10

Filiform -- thread-like
Ground beetle 11

Serrate -- sawtoothed

Moniliform -- bead-like
Termite

Clavate --
gradually
clubbed
Carrion beetle 14

Capitate -- abruptly clubbed
Butterfly 15

Lamellate -- nested plates
Scarab / Rhinoceros beetle 16

Pectinate -- comb-like
Fire-colored beetle 17

Plumose -- brush-like
Mosquito 18

Geniculate -- elbowed
Ant 19Prof. Dr. Badr El-Sabah / Lecture2

Aristate -
- pouch-
like with
lateral
bristle
House fly20Prof. Dr. Badr El-Sabah / Lecture2

Types of Mouth Parts

Orientation of Mouthparts
• Prognathous –projecting forward (horizontal)
• Hypognathous – projecting downward
• Opisthognathous –projecting obliquely or posteriorly

1. CHEWING MOUTH PARTS - Animals w/ these are
likely to feed upon plant material such as leaves Ex.
Grasshopper & Locust
2. PIERCING & SUCKING MOUTH PARTS:
- These animals will feed on different food sources Ex.
Mosquito sucks blood from its host
piercing/sucking
chewing

Generalized insect MOUTHPARTS

There are five different structures which are used for
the initial collection and processing of food:- Labrum -
a cover which may be loosely referred to as the upper
lip. Mandibles - hard, powerful cutting jaws. Maxillae -
'pincers' which are less powerful than the
mandibles. They are used to steady and manipulate
the food. They have a five segmented palp which is
sensory and often concerned with taste. Labium - the
lower cover, often referred to as the lower lip. It
actually represents the fused pair of ancestral second
maxillae. They have a three segmented palp which is
also sensory. Hypopharynx - a tongue-like structure in
the floor of the mouth. The salivary glands discharge
saliva through it. Biting Mouthparts.

From Gullen & Cranston 2000
The mouthparts of most
insects are highly
specialized for a single
purpose.

The paired mandibles and maxillae are formed into
needle-like structures (stylets) which are enclosed by
the labium. When a mosquito 'bites', the
pointed and barbed pair of maxillae penetrate the
dermal tissue of the vertebrate to anchor the
mouthparts in the tissue. This also provides leverage
when the other mouthparts are inserted. The sheath-
like labium slides back and the remaining mouthparts
pass through its tip and into the tissue. The mosquito
injects saliva, which contains anticoagulants, into the
tissue to stop the blood from clotting. The labrum acts
like a tongue and is used to suck up the blood.
Piercing & Sucking Mouthparts.

3. LAPPING MOUTH PARTS:
- An example of an insect wh/ has these is the housefly as it
feeds on various food sources
4. SIPHONING MOUTH PARTS:
- The insect will have a very long coiled structure called the
PROBOSCIS
- The PROBOSCIS is used for feeding on the nectar found
in flowers

Adult housefly mouthparts.
from Gullen & Cranston 2000

Mouthparts are soft and end in spongy pads.
Houseflies depend on their keen sense of smell,
provided by their antennae. For tasting and
consuming meals, the insect uses its proboscis, a
plunger-like appendage that extends from the bottom
of the head. Two small, antenna-like feelers
called maxillary palps allow the fly to taste its food The
end portion of the proboscis, called the labellum,
terminates in a spongy mouth, where the fly slurps its
food. It feeds only on liquids. It regurgitates part of its
last meal on to its next meal. This liquid and the
enzymes in it soften and liquefy part of the solid which
the fly then mops up. This is another way of spreading
germs. Also it frequently defecates while feeding.
Sponging & Sucking Mouthparts.
31

from Gullen & Cranston 2000
Specialized mouthparts of butterfly.
32

Found in butterflies and some moths (Lepidoptera). The
probiscis (galea) is a modification of the maxillary galea
found in the more primitive madibulate (chewing)
mouthparts, as seen in the cockroach. The probiscis
consists of paired galea which, during feeding, fit
together to form a tube that is used to suck up nectar (it
acts like a straw). When not in use the proboscis is
coiled and held close to the underside of the head.The
Morgan's sphinx moth, Xanthopan morgani , has
the longest proboscis at 30 to 35 cm in length. Siphoning
Mouthparts
33

5- Cewing Lapping . Multi-purpose mouthparts of the honey
bee, a facilitation & consequence of social life.

This is accomplished by having both mandibles and a
proboscis. The mandibles are the paired "teeth" that
can be open and closed to chew wood, manipulate
wax, cleaning other bees, and biting other workers or
pests (mites). The proboscis is mainly used for
sucking in liquids such as nectar, water and honey
inside the hive, for exchanging food with other bees
(trophallaxis), and also for removing water from
nectar. The workers can put a droplet of nectar
between the proboscis and the rest of the mouth parts
to increase the surface area, and slowly moving the
proboscis back and forth. Chewing & Sucking
Mouthparts

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Insect Mouthparts and Antennae

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