HOW INSECTS AND OTHER ARTHROPODS HELP AND HARM US

BENEFITS

Pollinate many kinds of food plants

Eat/break down dead plants and animals

Eat many kinds of pest organisms

Make food products such as honey

Make clothing products such as silk

Serve as food for other animals

Serve as food for many people

Important in scientific study of biology

Help researchers find cures for diseases

Help police solve crimes
PROBLEMS

Transmit diseases to people and animals

Damage landscape plants

Sting or bite people, pets, and farm animals

Annoy people (ants, gnats, etc.)

Damage wood structures (termites)

Eat food crops and damage plants

Can be parasites and feed on people/animals

*** Insects and other arthropods can be pests and cause problems for people, but they provide us with many
benefits we couldn’t do without. Honey bees have the ability to sting people, but they produce honey and they
pollinate 30% of our food crops in the United States. Most arthropods are important parts of the food chains in
nature: Without insects and other arthropods, humans might not be able to survive. We are INTERDEPENDENT!

Created by Thomas Hutson, 4-H Youth Development Educator, University of Maryland Extension. E-mail: thutson@umd.edu