Insects are arthropod animals.
Insect is a term that comes from the Latin insectus , in turn from insecāre ( "cut" , "make an incision" ). The etymological origin of the concept is linked to the marks on the body of these animals that resemble incisions.
An insect, therefore, is an arthropod that has a body divided into a head, thorax and abdomen . Insects, which undergo metamorphosis during their development, have a pair of antennae, one or two pairs of wings and three pairs of legs. When the term insect appears written with an initial capital letter ( Insecto ), it refers to the taxon of these animals.
Classification of insects
When it comes to establishing a classification of insects, we would have to say that there are several alternatives. However, among the most important and significant is the one that groups them in this way:
• Odonates , such as dragonflies. They are identified by having two pairs of wings.
• Dermaptera , among which are earwigs. In their case, it should be noted that they have very long and thin antennas that, as a general rule, do not deploy.
• Diptera , such as flies and mosquitoes. They only have one pair of wings and also what are known as halteres.
• Lepidoptera , such as butterflies or moths.
• Dictoptera , among which are cockroaches.
• Orthoptera , such as crickets and grasshoppers. Their main peculiarity, compared to other insects, is that they have hind legs that are prepared and adapted to jump.
• Coleoptera , as would be the case of beetles. What usually stands out about this type of insect is that it only has one pair of wings since, through the evolution it has undergone, the other one it had has become a set of cases called elytra.
• Hymenoptera , among which ants, wasps or bees stand out.
Among the insects of the diptera group is the mosquito.
Expert estimates
Experts claim that insects are the most diverse group of animals on the planet , with nearly one million known species and between six and thirty million species not yet described. If the broadest estimates are accurate, insects would account for more than 90% of life forms on Earth .
It is estimated, on the other hand, that there are 200 million insects for every human being. Most insects live on land, although some have their habitat in aquatic environments.
Ants , flies , mosquitoes , bees , wasps , beetles , butterflies , moths , crickets and dragonflies are some species of insects. Other animals, such as spiders , scorpions or centipedes , are often confused with insects because of their body structures, but they actually belong to other taxa.
Human beings and insects
Human beings usually fight insects because they are pests of crops and because many of them can transmit diseases , although there are cultures that use some insects as food or in the field of medicine .
In addition to all of the above, we would have to highlight the existence of the term social insect . This is a term that is used to refer to any insect that is part of a community that has the peculiarity that it is made up of beings from different castes.