WHAT IS A BUG ?

bug

The Latin name for bugs, Heteropterae (hetero: different, pterae: wings) is based on the fact that a bug's wings have two different parts: a (slighty) hardened and a membraneous part. This is the most obvious difference compared to beetles, Latin: Coleo-pterae, which have total hardened front wings Coleo, hardened. The Heteropterae are part of the larger order Hemipterae or half(=hemi)winged, that name also points to the same wing characteristic. To make it a bit more complex the length of the second wing pair may vary for one and the same species: there are macro-ptere individuals with full wings, micro-ptere with small wings and a-ptere without wings (a-: not, none).
The mouth parts of a bug are almost always transformed into a tube shaped snout, the proboscis or rostrum, which explains an other Latin name for bugs: Rhynchota (Rhyno = nose,snout). The rostrum has the form of a sharp pointed tube which in rest lies under the head and is swung forward to pierce into a plant or animal and suck in it's fluids, mostly after injecting digestive saliva. The notorious bedbug also doesn't bite, but will suck in the human's blood, the itching little wounds being caused by the injected saliva...
Most bugs have a flat shape. They have imperfect hibernation, meaning the newly hatched young already have a strong resemblance with the adult, be it that they often have no wings yet.

WHAT IS A WATER BUG ?

Water bugs (Hydrocorisae) are not a taxonomic group, but just a collection of very different families that have strongly adapted to a life on the water surface or under water. The group on the surface contains the Water Striders, the Pond Skaters and the Water Crickets among others, well known bugs under water are the Backswimmer, the Lesser Water boatman, the Water-scorpions and the Saucer Bug. On the two picture pages you can see how different they are


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All pictures on this site have been made by G.H. Visser (Aadorp, Holland), unless otherwise mentioned. All rights remain with him. These photo's may not be used for other then strictly private uses. In case you want to use them for purposes including third parties, you MUST request permission, by e-mailing the author. I encourage especially those wanting to use the pictures for nature-expositions or other educative targets.
© G.H. Visser 05-02-2006
rev. 27-07-2007


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