Hymenoptera is an order of insects with more than 150 thousand species. These are the most complexly organized insects, including social ones, whose behavior is highly complex (due to instincts).

Hymenoptera include bees, wasps, bumblebees, ants, wasps, sawflies and many other insects.

Hymenoptera have two pairs of thin, veined wings, with the second (posterior) pair being smaller. There are representatives without wings (worker ants). The front and rear fenders are interlocked, resulting in the appearance that there is only one fender on each side.

Usually the head, chest and abdomen are well separated (between them the body parts become thin). In many, the chest and abdomen are connected by a thin stalk.

Most species of Hymenoptera have three simple eyes between the compound eyes.

In many species, the female has an ovipositor at the end of her abdomen. In other species, there is a sting, which is a modified ovipositor.

The mouthparts are gnawing or gnawing-sucking type.

In social Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, ants, etc.), their numerous “families” are usually the descendants of one female queen. At the same time, polymorphism is observed in its descendants. Some perform the functions of workers, others - males.

Also in the fields, pollinating insects are of great benefit to humans.

For a person they are of great importance bees, in particular honey bee. It can be either wild (forming nests in hollows) or domesticated (families live in hives). A bee colony consists of a queen, drones (males), and worker bees (fertile females).

Honey bee

bumblebees larger and thicker than bees, their body is densely covered with hairs. Nests are built in the ground, under mosses and in other places. Bumblebees most often pollinate clover.

Wasps- This is a collective group of Hymenoptera. It includes both the wasps we are used to (the family of True wasps) and many other representatives.

Ants build anthills that are quite complex internal structure. Anthills contain labyrinths of underground passages, and also, in many species, an above-ground structure. What are mistaken for ant eggs are their pupae located in cocoons. Worker ants are wingless females. Ants destroy many insect pests.

They are classified as harmful hymenoptera, which often cause damage to forests and agricultural plants (for example, the bread sawfly). With their saw-toothed ovipositor, they damage the integument of the plant and lay eggs in it. Sawfly larvae, similar to caterpillars, feed on plants.

What structural features of Hymenoptera you will learn from this article.

Features of Hymenoptera

Hymenoptera are the largest and most developed order of insects. The order Hymenoptera includes wasps, bees, bumblebees, ants and riders.

A distinctive feature of this family is that its representatives have two pairs of membranous wings. In this case, the rear pair does not function during flight. There are also wingless species of insects.

Characteristics of Hymenoptera: structural features

The organism of this family has some peculiarities in its structure. The size of the body ranges from 0.2 mm to 6 cm. The head, chest and abdomen are distinguished. These segments clearly separate each other. The sense organs are located on the head. The eyes are well developed and have a complex structure. But in nature there are also blind worker ants. The organs of touch are geniculate or straight antennae, which consist of 3-60 segments. The degree of their development depends on the type of insect. In primitive species of Hymenoptera oral apparatus gnawing type, and in higher insects - licking-sucking, when the lower lip was transformed into a proboscis.

The chest of representatives of this family is divided into: a poorly developed metathorax, mesothorax and prothorax. The insect's limbs and wings are attached to it. The wings themselves are transparent and membranous. Moreover, the front pair of wings is longer and better developed than the rear. Therefore, in flight they play a leading role. The hind wings have simplified venation. They are rarely reduced in worker ants.

The abdomen is made up of segments. There are from 6 to 8 of them. In females, at the end of the abdomen there is an ovipositor, which is transformed into a drill or sting, and in males, copulation organs are located in this place. Venomous paired glands are located at the base of the sting. The drill and sting are designed to introduce eggs into a plant or animal, where the larva will subsequently live. Hymenoptera also includes insects that do not have a sting. Instead there is a poisonous gland. After a bite, poison is injected into the wound through it.

The digestive system has a long intestine and is well developed in insects that live for a long time in the adult stage - bees and wasps. It is less developed in insects with a short life cycle - gall moths and ichneumon ichneumon fly. The peculiarity of the respiratory organs of Hymenoptera is the supply of bubbles to the tracheal system.

In insects, the life cycle with complete transformation passes through several stages: egg, larva, pupa and adult insect.

We hope that from this article you learned what the structure of Hymenoptera is.

Introduction

The biological diversity of Hymenoptera, the richness of the order in species and their abundance in a wide variety of biocenoses and agrocenoses make them very noticeable against the background economic activity person. Herbivorous hymenoptera - sawflies, horntails, seed-eaters, which cause harm to agriculture and forestry. First of all, we should name such species as the common and black bread sawfly, rapeseed sawfly, and cherry sawfly. Substantial harm in the forest they are caused by pine sawflies, which eat the needles. Technical wood pests are horntails.

However, among Hymenoptera there are much more useful species than harmful. Everyone knows the domestic bee, which not only gives us honey, wax and other bee products, but also pollinates cultivated plants. The main pollinators of plants are bumblebees and wild solitary bees. Pollinators can also be wasps and some wasps, which can often be found feeding on flowers. But the main positive role of wasps and wasps is as entomophages.

In this regard, the study of Hymenoptera is of interest today. The purpose of our study is to study the diversity of the Hymenoptera order in the southwestern part of Belarus. To achieve our goal, we will set ourselves certain tasks:

1. determine the places where insects are collected;

2. hold a group meeting;

3. carry out pre-species identification;

4. perform statistical processing of the collected material.

1. Review of literature information on the study of Hymenoptera in the southwestern part of Belarus

Hymenoptera ( Hymenoptera ) – one of the most advanced orders of insects in the evolutionary pan. Hymenoptera have been known in fossil form since the Mesozoic. Currently, they are distributed across all continents except Antarctica. Some Hymenoptera, such as bumblebees, are among the northernmost insects. They climb the mountains to the eternal snow.

Adult insects have two pairs of membranous wings covered with relatively sparse veins, and small forms are usually almost or completely devoid of veining. The rear pair of wings is smaller and has a subordinate importance during flight. In living insects, both pairs of wings are usually fastened with hooks to each other and work as one plane, which is why Sharova I. Kh. calls Hymenoptera “functionally dipterous.” Some species (worker ants, female drinids, germans, and some betilids and ichneumon ichorata) do not have wings.

The mouthparts are gnawing or licking-gnawing. In the latter case, the lower lip and lower jaws are extended and form a proboscis with a tongue at the end. This mouthpart is used to suck nectar from flowers. The mandibles are well developed in all species and are used not only for feeding, but also for building nests, digging soil, etc. Some ants have a bizarre shape and exceed the length of their heads.

The antennae are simple, club-shaped, comb-shaped, feathery, and can be either straight or geniculate. In the latter case, their first segment is elongated and is called the handle, and the remaining segments form a flagellum. The number of antennal segments varies from 3 to 70. The head has a pair of complex compound eyes and 3 simple ocelli, but some ants are completely blind.

Legs running with 5-segmented tarsus. The tibia and tarsus of the foreleg sometimes bear a special apparatus for cleaning the antennae and tarsi, formed by a comb spur at the end of the tibia and a notch on the first segment of the tarsus.

An interesting feature of Hymenoptera is that their females, as a rule, lay either haploid or diploid eggs. Of the former, males always develop, of the latter, only females. In typical cases, haploid eggs are unfertilized, and diploid eggs are fertilized. However, in some cases, parthenogenesis is observed. In this case, during the formation of eggs, one reduction division occurs, and unfertilized eggs remain diploid.

The transformation is complete. Sawfly larvae are very similar in appearance to caterpillars and are therefore called false caterpillars.

Sexual dimorphism is well expressed. There is often polymorphism in which there are several forms of females. In social Hymenoptera (ants, bees, wasps), a caste of worker individuals develops - sterile females who perform various works in the nest. The polymorphism is most pronounced in ants, where workers are always wingless. Within this caste, some ants exhibit further subdivision into subcastes of soldiers, “honey barrels,” etc. In some species the number of sharply distinct worker subcastes reaches six. All this is due to the complex division of functions in the ant family.

The lifestyle of Hymenoptera is extremely diverse. Horntails typically develop in the wood of trees. The larvae of most sawflies feed on plant leaves, and in general this group is biologically similar to butterflies, which is reflected in the convergent similarity of the larvae. Among the stinging Hymenoptera we find a huge variety of complex instinctive activities associated with the care of offspring, the pinnacle of which is the “social” behavior of ants, folded winged wasps and bees.

According to N. N. Plavilshchikov, “at least 70,000 species of Hymenoptera are distributed on earth.” However, Zenkevich L.A. in his works states that “the order Hymenoptera has about 90,000 species and is second in number only to beetles and butterflies.” In turn, Sharova I. Kh. is of the opinion that the order Hymenoptera “includes more than 300,000 species.”

Analyzing these data, we can say that the order Hymenoptera is one of the most numerous orders of insects.

2. Methods of collecting and collecting Hymenoptera

The most common and widely used method of collection Hymenoptera insects is mowing with an entomological net. A net made from durable mill gas type fabric is best. It is widely practiced to collect hymenoptera from the flowers they visit for feeding. For bees, collecting on flowers is the main thing. Therefore, meadows and forest edges with a large amount of nectar- and pollen-bearing plants are best suited for collecting bees. flowering plants. It is better to use a gauze net (the diameter of the ring of such a net is 12-15 cm, the length of the stick is 30-50 cm). Bees are collected from individual flowers with a small net, but bees can also be caught on flowers with a test tube.

Stinging Hymenoptera can also be collected near their nesting sites, especially in cases where they form colonies. In this case, they can be caught along with the prey (it is advisable to pin it when mounting it on the same pin along with the wasp).

The gathering place for ants is the nest. There are nests various types: underground, aboveground, in hollows, under stones. The nest, if it is not in the form of a heap, is usually found by single ants carrying prey into the hole. They are also found by the crowding of individual ants, by piles of wood flour, on stumps, and finally, under stones.

Ants, depending on their size, need to be caught with tweezers, a small brush dipped in alcohol, or an exhauster.

Some species of Hymenoptera (riders, sometimes wasps) actively fly towards the light, and light traps can be used to collect them.

Chloroform and ether can be used to pickle hymenoptera. In the field, before mounting, it is better to lay out the hymenoptera on cotton layers and store them on them. It is not recommended to use alcohol for storage, as it can damage the material and complicate the mounting.

3 Analysis of the collected material

3.1 c systematic list of collected species

For writing course work 20 species of Hymenoptera were collected in various habitats, a list of which is given below:

Squad Hymenoptera Hymenoptera

Superfamily Sessile bellies Symphyta

Family Real sawflies Tenthredinoidea

Genus Diprion schrank

Pine sawfly Diprion pini

Superfamily Stalk-bellied Apocrita

Family Riders Ichneumonidae

Genus Alomya

Alomia the winner Alomya debellator

Family Road wasps Pomplidae

Genus Anoplius

Red-bellied road wasp Anoplius viaticus

Family Social wasps Vespidae

Genus Vespa

Common hornet Vespa crabro

Genus Dolichovespula

Wood wasp Dolichovespula saxonica

Genus Vespula

Common wasp Vespula vulgaris

Family Solitary wasps Eumenidae

The honey bee, wild bees, bumblebees, ants, ichneumon wasps, sawflies, horntails are hymenopterans that have two pairs of membranous wings as adults (hence the name of their order). There are also wingless insects that are part of this order, for example worker ants. About 300,000 species of Hymenoptera are known.

Pattern: Hymenoptera - great horntail and birch sawfly

Sawflies

In sawflies, females have an ovipositor that resembles a saw. These insects use it to saw through plant tissue in order to lay eggs in the cuts made. Sawfly larvae are similar to butterfly caterpillars and are called false caterpillars. They are distinguished from caterpillars that have 2-5 pairs of prolegs by the presence of 6-8 pairs of prolegs. Sawfly larvae feed mainly on plant leaves. Some of them are known as harmful pests of trees and shrubs. Thus, larvae of pine sawflies often completely eat up tree needles.

Horntails

Horntails got their name because their females have a long ovipositor, hard as a horn. The female uses it, like a drill, to drill into wood and lays eggs in the holes made. Horntail larvae feed on wood, damaging many trees.

Riders

Pattern: riders - whitefish (left), rissa (right)

Pattern: Stinging Hymenoptera

Stinging Hymenoptera are the well-known wasps, bees, bumblebees and ants. They are called stinging because in females the ovipositor, retracted into the abdomen, has turned into a sting - a weapon of defense and attack. Ants have a very short sting, so they cannot sting. Among bees and wasps, species leading a solitary lifestyle predominate, when each female independently raises her offspring. For others (some bees and some wasps, all bumblebees and all ants), caring for offspring led to the emergence of a social way of life. U social insects in one nest all individuals of one or several generations are united, and different individuals perform different functions. By the way, insects from at least two successive generations live together - maternal and daughter. Most often, the Hymenoptera society is a single family consisting of the offspring of one female.

Picture: forest red ants and anthill

The main feature of the society of stinging hymenoptera is that it consists of such members, each of which cannot exist without the others. Such a society necessarily includes three groups: fertile females(or queens, the so-called queens), performing the functions of reproduction and settlement; males participating only in reproduction - drones; workers, which account for all the work involved in caring for females and males, as well as for the offspring. Workers build and protect nests and provide food to all family members. In social insects, workers are sterile females. In bees and wasps they are winged, in ants they are always wingless.

The role of stinging hymenoptera

The role of stinging hymenoptera is truly enormous. Bees and bumblebees are one of the main pollinators of flowering plants, and wasps and ants are our allies, destroying countless harmful insects to feed their offspring.

Taxonomy
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ITIS
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Hymenoptera (Hymenoptera) - one of the most developed orders of insects in evolutionary terms. The group includes more than 155 thousand species from 9100 genera. (according to other sources - about 400,000 species). The distinctive features of this order include: of the two pairs of wings, the hind ones are smaller than the front ones, the wings have a sparse network of veins, rarely without veins (there are also wingless forms), on the anterior edge of the hind wing there is a number of hook-shaped hooks included in the corresponding fold on the posterior edge forewing, gnawing and licking or only gnawing mouthparts and complete metamorphosis. Size varies from 0.2 mm to 135 mm (ovipositor ichneumon ispers), but is usually less than 20 mm.

Specialists who study Hymenoptera insects are called hymenopterologists.

Morphological characteristics

Head

The head, chest and abdomen are sharply separated. The head is free, mainly expanded in the transverse direction. Compound eyes are almost always well developed; between them there are usually three simple ocelli arranged in a triangle; There are also forms that lack eyes or are completely blind (for example, working ants of some species).

The legs of Hymenoptera are walking, have simple or double trochanters, and 5-segmented tarsi. Some groups have structural features adapted for collecting pollen (see Bees).

Abdomen

The abdomen is of very different shape, consists of 6-8 segments, not counting the segment tightly connected to the metathorax, and modified segments retracted into the posterior end of the abdomen and carrying a sting or drill in females, and copulatory organs in males. The abdomen is attached to the chest either by a wide base or by a more or less narrowed and elongated stalk. The appendages of the posterior end of the abdomen (stings and drills or ovipositors) consist of a pair of setae, or stylets, and a grooved part, consisting of two separate or more or less fused plates. At the base of the sting, which in a calm state is always retracted into the abdomen, there is a paired poisonous gland with a reservoir in which poison accumulates. Sometimes (precisely many ants) there is no sting, there is only a poisonous gland; in this case, the insect makes a wound with its jaws and, bending its abdomen forward, sprays poison into it. Ovipositors, or drills, can present a wide variety of structures. Their purpose is to introduce the egg into the plant or animal in which the larva will live; depending on how accessible the place where the egg is laid is, the ovipositors can be shorter or longer, with short ovipositors retracted at rest, long ones free.

The digestive canal is highly developed and long in those forms that live for a relatively long time in the adult insect stage (bees, ants, wasps), and short in forms that live for a short time in the adult stage (nutcrackers, ichneumon wasps). The tracheal system is often equipped with bladders. In the structure of the nervous system, there is a remarkable strong development of the so-called stalked bodies or cerebral convolutions of the suprapharyngeal ganglion in those Hymenoptera that are distinguished by the most developed mental life (ants, bees, wasps); at the same time, the same differences are noticed among different indivisibles of the same species; Thus, in male bees (drones) these organs are less developed than in active workers. Characterized by cannibalism.

Life cycle

Hymenoptera exhibit more or less extreme sexual dimorphism; males are often very different from females in size, color, development of wings, sensory organs, etc. In social Hymenoptera, in addition to males and females, there are also underdeveloped females incapable of fertilization - the so-called workers, who, in turn, can be of different structures, so that in one community there can be from three to five different kinds of individuals (males, females and 1-3 forms of workers). Along with ordinary reproduction Reproduction without fertilization (parthenogenetic) is also common in Hymenoptera through fertilized eggs. At the same time, only males can develop from unfertilized eggs (for example, in bees, in which the female voluntarily fertilizes the laid eggs; unfertilized and therefore male-producing eggs can also be laid by worker bees) or females (for example, in gall bees). Sometimes (in gallworms) parthenogenetic generations can alternate with sexual ones (heterogony).

The transformation of Hymenoptera is complete. The larvae have a very different structure. In some (sawflies) the larvae live freely on the leaves, but appearance They are similar to the larvae (caterpillars) of butterflies (hence the name - false caterpillars) and have 3 pairs of thoracic and 6-8 pairs of abdominal legs. In horntails ( Siricidae) larvae live in a tree or ( Cephidae) in the stems and branches of plants and have 3 pairs of underdeveloped thoracic legs. In other Hymenoptera, the larvae live in nests or inside nutrients and are missing legs.

Hymenoptera pupae always belong to the type of free pupae (Pupa libera; see Insects). Before pupation, the larva usually makes a loose or dense cocoon from the mulberries it secretes, while others pupate without a cocoon.

The care of offspring reaches the highest degree of complexity in social Hymenoptera; here in the community itself there was a division of labor associated with the loss of the ability of reproduction by the majority of females; The share of these females (workers) falls wholly or mainly all the work of building nests, obtaining food and caring for offspring. The nests of social Hymenoptera, often reaching extreme complexity and perfection, are built from a substance secreted by the insects themselves - wax (in bees, bumblebees) or plant substances crushed by the jaws (in wasps), from earth, clay, dung, etc., or - dig out into the ground. Feeding of the larvae is done gradually, and food is given directly into the larvae’s mouth; it can consist of pollen and honey (in bees), sugary substances and insects (in wasps, ants).

Meaning

In relation to humans, some hymenoptera are useful directly, delivering useful substances (honey, wax), others - indirectly, exterminating harmful insects (in this regard, riders in the broad sense of the word are especially important). Many of the Hymenoptera are also important in the process of plant pollination. Hymenoptera are harmful partly by their stings, partly by eating various supplies and damaging buildings (some ants), but many of them are mainly harmful in agricultural terms, causing more or less significant devastation among cultivated and forest plants.

Paleontology

Hymenoptera have been known in fossil form since the Triassic, and most fossil Hymenoptera are found in Tertiary deposits and amber. Several dozen completely extinct families and subfamilies of Hymenoptera are known:

• Cephoidea
  • †Sepulcidae
• Pamphilioidea Konow, 1897 (Megalodontoidea)
  • †Xyelydidae Rasnitsyn, 1968
• Orussoidea
  • †Sinoryssidae - Sinoryssus Hong, 1984
• Siricoidea
  • Anaxyelidae Martynov, 1925
    • †Anaxyelinae
    • †Dolichostigmatinae Rasnitsyn, 1968
    • †Kempendajinae Rasnitsyn, 1980
    • Syntexinae Benson, 1935
  • †Beipiaosiricidae
  • †Daohugoidae Rasnitsyn, Zhang, 2004
  • †Gigasiricidae Rasnitsyn, 1968
  • Praesiricidae Rasnitsyn, 1968
  • †Protosiricidae - 1 species
  • †Pseudosiricidae Handlirsch, 1906
  • †Sinosiricidae
• Tenthredinoidea
  • †Electrotomidae Rasnitsyn, 1977 - 1 species (Electrotoma)
  • †Xyelotomidae Rasnitsyn, 1968
• Stalk-bellied
• †Ephialtitoidea
  • †Ephialtitidae Rasnitsyn -
  • †Paroryssidae Martynov, 1925 ( Microryssus Rasnitsyn, 1968, Paroryssus Martynov, 1925, Praeoryssus Rasnitsyn, 1968)
• †Karatavitoidea

Synonymy

Squad Hymenoptera Linnaeus 1758:553 has many synonyms. In the original 1758 edition, Carl Linnaeus included the following genera: Cynips + Tenthredo + Ichneumon + Sphex + Vespa + Apis + Formica + Mutilla. Many of them turned out to be prefabricated groups. For the detachment as a whole, the following names were then given, reduced to synonyms:

• = Aculeata Scopoli 1763 (non Aculeata sensu Latereille 1807)
• = Vespoides Laicharting 1781
• = Piezata Fabricius 1793
• = Phleboptera Clairville 1798
• = Solenognatha Spinola 1850
• = Metabola Polynephria Brauer 1885 (non Menognatha Polynephria Brauer 1885)
• = Lambentia Haeckel 1896
• = Hymenopteroidea Handlirsch 1903
• = Panhymenoptera Crampton 1938
• = Hymenopteria Crampton 1938
• = Hymenopterida Boudreaux 1979

Taxonomy

According to the taxonomy used by the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, all Hymenoptera are divided into two suborders: Stalk-bellied and Sessile-bellied with the following superfamilies:

• Pamphylioideae ( Pamphilioidea)
• Xyphidrioides ( Xiphydrioidea)
• Anaxieloides ( Anaxyeloidea)
• Orussoides ( Orussoidea)
• Bread sawflies ( Cephoidea)

Sometimes the superfamily Megalodontoides ( Megalodontoidea).

Some families of the suborder Sessile-bellied are combined into the artificial group Sawflies.

• Stephanoid riders ( Stephanoidea)
• Trigonaloid ( Trigonaloidea)
• Evanioid riders ( Evanioidea)
• Megalyroid riders ( Megalyroidea)
• Scolioid ( Scolioidea)
• Burrowing wasps ( Sphecoidea)
• Road wasps ( Pompilloidea)

According to another system, Hymenoptera are divided into the suborder stinging ( Aculeata) and drill-nosed ( Terebrantia).

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See what “Hymenoptera” is in other dictionaries:

Hymenoptera… Spelling dictionary-reference book

Insect squad. Length 0.2 mm 6 cm. Suborders: sessile-bellied (sawflies, horntails) and stalk-bellied (ichneumon fly, gallworms, wasps, bees, ants). Most have 2 pairs of transparent membranous wings (hence the name). Females have an ovipositor,... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

Hymenoptera, an order of insects that includes sawflies, ants, wasps, hornets and bees. Life cycle includes the following stages: egg, larva, pupa and adult insect, which has two pairs of membranous wings that work synchronously ... Scientific and technical encyclopedic dictionary

Hymenoptera, oh, units. oh, wow, wed. (specialist.). An order of insects with transparent membranous wings. Order Hymenoptera. Stinging items (wasps, bees, ants). Ozhegov's explanatory dictionary. S.I. Ozhegov, N.Yu. Shvedova. 1949 1992 … Ozhegov's Explanatory Dictionary

Hymenoptera- - EN hymenopteran Insects including bees, wasps, ants, and sawflies, having two pair of membranous wings and an ovipositor specialized for stinging, sawing or piercing. (Source:... ... Technical Translator's Guide

Yx; pl. Zool. The name of an order of insects with transparent, membrane-like wings. * * * Hymenoptera order insects Length 0.2 mm 6 cm. Suborders: sessile-bellied (sawflies, horntails) and stalked-bellied (riders, gallworms, wasps... encyclopedic Dictionary

Hymenoptera- (Hymenoptera) this is the most extensive order of insects, and, moreover, the most interesting, since it includes the famous bees, ants, and wasps. All Hymenoptera have a gnawing mouthpart, but, in addition, most have a highly developed tongue... Life of insects

- (Hymenoptera) order of insects. Distinctive features of P.: 4 membranous wings with a sparse network of veins, rarely without veins (there are also wingless forms), gnawing and licking or only gnawing oral organs and complete metamorphosis. Head, chest and abdomen... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron

Books

• Mongolia and Kam. Proceedings of the expedition of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society, carried out in 1899-1901. under the leadership of P.K. Kozlov. Volume 7. Arthropoda. Vol. 1. Diptera and Hymenoptera, A N Kaznakov. Publication of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society Reproduced in the original author's spelling. V..., A N Kaznakov. This book will be produced in accordance with your order using Print-on-Demand technology. Publication of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society Reproduced in the original author’s…