What is Entomology?
Entomology is the study of insects

Are Spiders Insects?
No, spiders are arachnids, but most people group all "bugs" together. Entomologists study a lot of these other "bugs" too.

If all "bugs" are not insects, what is an insect?

• All insects have an exoskeleton - Unlike us, an insect's skeleton is on the outside of its body.
• All insects have three body segments - The head, the thorax, and the abdomen. The head is where you find all the sensory organs: eyes, ears, mouth, and antannae. The thorax is where all of the insect's legs and wings are attached. The abdomen is where the insect digests its food and where its reproductive organs aere located.
• All insects have six jointed legs.
• All insects have one pair of antennae.
• Most insects have 2 pair of wings - Some have one pair like flies. Some ants even have wings.

Fun Facts
- Three out of four creatures on the planet are insects; they out-number all creatures.
- Insects would out-weigh all creatures if they were put on a scale. (Insects vs. All Animals)
- There are more kinds (species) of insects than any other kind of creature.
- Ants can lift over 50 times their weight.
- Fleas can jump the equivalent of a football field.
- Insects have adapted to live and survive among all groups of organisms: mammals (flies, mosquitoes), plants (bees, butterflies, fungus ants), arthropods (aphid-tending ants).
- Insects have adapted to live in all types of habitats except for the ocean: desert, arctic, marsh, prairie, streams, lakes, deciduous forest, conifer forest, residential areas, cities, rainforests, and caves.
- Humans eat insects.
- Live beetles are tethered to people as live jewelry.
- The mayfly (Ephemoroptera) has one of the shortest life spans. Adults only live a few hours after emerging from the water.
- The queen termite lives the longest, 10-15 yrs.
- For every human, there are one million ants.

Web Links
Going Bug-gy
UF Book of Insect Records
Alan York's Insectivity
Insects.org