COMMUNITY COLLEGE OF GINGOOG CITY

Don Restituto Baol Central School Complex

Gingoog City

Crop Protection 1
(PRINCIPLES OF ENTOMOLOGY)

Name: _____________________________________ Date Submitted: __________________

Course, Year & Section: _________________________ Rating: _________________________

Insects’ Wings
Activity #8

I. Introduction:

Insect wings are adult outgrowths of the insect exoskeleton that enable insects to fly. They are found on the
second and third thoracic segments (the mesothorax and metathorax), and the two pairs are often referred to as
the forewings and hindwings, respectively, though a few insects lack hindwings, even rudiments. The wings are
strengthened by a number of longitudinal veins, which often have cross-connections that form closed "cells" in the
membrane (extreme examples include the dragonflies and lacewings). The patterns resulting from the fusion and cross-
connection of the wing veins are often diagnostic for different evolutionary lineages and can be used for identification to
the family or even genus level in many orders of insects.
The wings are present in only one sex (often the male) in some groups such as velvet ants and Strepsiptera, or
are selectively lost in "workers" of social insects such as ants and termites. Rarely, the female is winged but the male
not, as in fig wasps. In some cases, wings are produced only at particular times in the life cycle, such as in the dispersal
phase of aphids. Wing structure and colouration often vary with morphs, such as in the aphids, migratory phases
of locusts and polymorphic butterflies. At rest, the wings may be held flat, or folded a number of times along specific
patterns; most typically, it is the hindwings which are folded, but in a few groups such as the vespid wasps, it is the
forewings.

II. Learning Objectives:

At the end of laboratory period, you should be able to:

1. Describe and discuss the parts of insect wings;
2. Pinpoint the parts of insects’ wings.

III. Materials:

Resource Units, Pencil, Bond Paper, Ballpen, internet sources (optional)

IV. Procedures:

1. Scan your resource units or browse in the internet on the features of insects’ wings.
2. Read and understand the unique or specific characteristics, details and all other information based on your
readings from your resource units and/or browsing in the internet sources that would describe and help you
answering in the discussions below.
3. Note the different parts insect wings based on the figure below. Can you name what are these and their
respective functions?
4. Discuss some question/s based on your understanding.

Activity #8: Insects’ Wings Page 1

V. Illustrations

Fig. 1. Structure of Insect Wings

VI. Discussions

A. Describe the typical veins of insect wings.

Typical Veins Descriptions

Costa

Sub-costa

Radius

Media

Cubitus

Activity #8: Insects’ Wings Page 2

 Cubital furrow

Anal veins

Jugal veins

B. Describe the cross veins of insect wings

Cross Veins Descriptions

Costal

Radial

Radio-medial

Medio-cubital

Cubito-anal

Anal

VII. References:

Averof, Michalis, and S. M. Cohen. (1997). "Evolutionary origin of insect wings from ancestral gills". Nature. 385 (6617):
627–630. Bibcode:1997Natur.385..627A. doi:10.1038/385627a0. PMID 9024659. S2CID 4257270

Crampton, G. (1916). "The Phylogenetic Origin and the Nature of the Wings of Insects According to the Paranotal
Theory". Journal of the New York Entomological Society. 24 (1): 1–39. JSTOR 25003692

Ross, Andrew (2017). "Insect Evolution: The Origin of Wings". Current Biology. 27 (3): R113
R115. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2016.12.014. PMID 28171756 – via Web of Science.

Salatan, Elvira T. (2003). Resource Units in Crop Protection 3 (Principles of Entomology). Institute of Agriculture.
Misamis Oriental State College of Agriculture and Technology (Now USTP-Claveria). Claveria, Misamis Oriental

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insect_wing

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insect_wing#/media/File:Venation_of_insect_wing.svg

Activity #8: Insects’ Wings Page 3