Morphology and Evolution of the Insect Abdomen: With Special Reference to Developmental Patterns and Their Bearings Upon Systematics focuses on the morphology and evolution of the skeletal structures of the insect abdomen and the internal reproductive system. Emphasis is placed on patterns of development and their implications for systematics. Comprised of 44 chapters, this book begins with an introduction to the principles of structural evolution, paying particular attention to morphogenetical regularities and anagenesis, heterochrony, substitution and homology, and analogy. The next section is devoted to various aspects of the insect abdomen including abdominal segmentation, appendages, and ovipositor as well as the male external genitalia, the male and female efferent duct, and the abdominal ganglia. The final section deals with the abdomen of a wide range of insect classes such as Protura, Collembola, Orthoptera, Coleoptera, Homoptera, Mantodea, and Diptera. This monograph will be of interest to entomologists, physiologists, and evolutionary biologists.

This classic text, first published in 1935, is once again available. Still the standard reference in the English language, Principles of Insect Morphology is considered the author's masterpiece. A talented artist as well as one of the leading entomologists of his day, Robert E. Snodgrass produced a wealth of publications that display an accuracy and precision still unsurpassed. The 19 chapters in this volume cover each group of insect organs and their associated structures, at the same time providing a coherent morphological view of their fundamental nature and apparent evolution. To accomplish this aim, Snodgrass compares insect organs with those of other arthropods. Each chapter concludes with a glossary of terms. The 319 multipart illustrations are an invaluable source of information and have never been duplicated. This edition includes a new foreword by George Eickwort, Professor of Entomology at Cornell University, which relates the book to today's courses in insect morphology. Republication of this textbook will provide another generation of students with an essential foundation for their studies in entomology.

Insects are the most diverse group of organisms in the 3 billion-year history of life on Earth, and the most ecologically dominant animals on land. This book chronicles for the first time the complete evolutionary history of insects: their living diversity, relationships and 400 million years of fossils. Whereas other volumes have focused on either living species or fossils, this is the first comprehensive synthesis of all aspects of insect evolution. The book is illustrated with 955 photo- and electronmicrographs, drawings, diagrams, and field photos, many in full colour and virtually all of them original. The book will appeal to anyone engaged with insect diversity: professional entomologists and students, insect and fossil collectors, and naturalists.

In the last decades a remarkable renaissance has materialized in insect morphology, mainly triggered by the development of new cutting-edge technologies. This is an exciting time for biological synthesis where the mysteries and data derived from genomes can be combined with centuries of data from morphology and development. And, now, more than ever, detailed knowledge of morphology is essential to understanding the evolution of all groups of organisms. In this “age of phylogenomics” researchers rely on morphological data to support molecular findings, test complex evolutionary scenarios, and for placing fossil taxa. This textbook provides an in-depth treatment of the structures and the phylogeny of the megadiverse Hexapoda. The first part presents an up-to-date overview of general insect morphology with detailed drawings, scanning electron micrographs, and 3-D reconstructions. Also included is a chapter covering innovative morphological techniques (e.g., μ-computer tomography, 3-D modeling), brief treatments of insect development and phylogenetic methods, and a comprehensive morphological glossary. The second part is of a modern synthesis of insect systematics that includes taxon-specific morphological information for all Orders. The work is an invaluable reference for students and researchers working in all facets of biology and is a must for evolutionary biologists. A detailed understanding of morphology is essential in unraveling phylogenetic relationships and developing complex evolutionary scenarios. Increasingly researchers in phylogenomics are re/turning to morphological data to support their findings, while the development of new cutting-edge technologies has further increased interest in this growing field. This definitive handbook provides an in-depth treatment of insect morphology. The first part presents an up-to-date overview of insect morphology with detailed drawings, brilliant scanning electron micrographs and 3-D reconstructions as interactive PDFs. This is complemented by a chapter on innovative morphological techniques (e.g., μ-computer tomography, 3-D modeling) and a comprehensive morphological glossary. The second part treats the state of the art in insect systematics and includes taxon-specific morphological information for all orders. Systematics are treated formally, with for example the arguments for relationships (“apomorphies”) always listed explicitly. The work is a useful reference for students and researchers working in different fields of biology and a must for those dealing with insects from an evolutionary perspective.

Insect Metamorphosis: From Natural History to Regulation of Development and Evolution explores the origin of metamorphosis, how it evolved, and how it is it regulated. The book discusses insect metamorphosis as a key innovation in insect evolution. With most of the present biodiversity on Earth composed of metamorphosing insects—approximately 1 million species currently described, with another 10-30 million still waiting to be discovered, the book delves into misconceptions and past treatments. In addition, the topic of integrating insect metamorphosis into the theory of evolution by natural selection as noted by Darwin in his On the Origin of Species is also discussed. Users will find this to be a comprehensive and updated review on insect metamorphosis, covering biological, physiological and molecular facets, with an emphasis on evolutionary aspects. - Features updated knowledge from the past decade on the mechanisms of action of juvenile hormone, the main doorkeeper of insect metamorphosis - Aids researchers in entomology or developmental biology dealing with specialized aspects of metamorphosis - Provides applied entomologists with recently updated data, especially on regulation, to better face the problems of pest control and management - Gives general evolutionary biologists context on the process of metamorphosis in its larger scope

This book addresses microinsects, their structure and their differences from larger relatives. Moreover, it discusses structural changes that accompany extreme diminution in living organisms, evolutionary inventions that help insects to live in the microworld, and factors that limit the size of animals. It also takes a careful look at the potential benefits of the study of microinsects for solving biotechnological and fundamental scientific problems. Miniaturization is not only a trend in technology: it is also one of the trends in the evolution of life. Many of the problems modern engineers are still struggling with were solved by nature millions of years ago. The world of microscopic organisms, invisible to the naked eye, is all around us. Microinsects — the extremely diverse range of miniature insects less than a millimeter long — are one of the most intriguing components of this microworld. Having evolved to the size of unicellular organisms, the smallest insects managed not only to preserve their structural complexity, but also to evolve some novel features not found in larger insects.

Surprising though it seems, the world faces almost as great a threat today from arthropod-borne diseases as it did in the heady days of the 1950s when global eradication of such diseases by eliminating their vectors with synthetic insecticides, particularly DDT, seemed a real possibility. Malaria, for example, still causes tremendous morbidity and mortality throughout the world, especially in Africa. Knowledge of the biology of insect and arachnid disease vectors is arguably more important now than it has ever been. Biological research directed at the development of better methods of control becomes even more important in the light of the partial failure of many control schemes that are based on insecticide- although not all is gloom, since basic biological studies have contributed enormously to the outstanding success of international control programmes such as the vast Onchocerciasis Control Programme in West Africa. It is a sine qua non for proper understanding of the epidemiology and successful vector control of any human disease transmitted by an arthropod that all concerned with the problem - medical entomologist, parasitologist, field technician - have a good basic understanding of the arthropod's biology. Knowledge will be needed not only of its direct relationship to any parasite or pathogen that it transmits but also of its structure, its life history and its behaviour - in short, its natural history. Above all, it will be necessary to be sure that it is correctly identified.