Encyclopedia Of Entomology

The Encyclopedia of Entomology provides a detailed, global overview of insects and their close relatives, including taxonomy, behavior, ecology, physiology, history, and management. It covers all the major groups of arthropods, as well as many important families and individual species. The encyclopedia also covers physiology, genetics, ecology, behavior, insect relationships with people, medical entomology, and pest management.

Encyclopedia of Entomology

The Encyclopedia of Entomology brings together the expertise of more than 450 distinguished entomologists from 40 countries to provide a worldwide overview of insects and their close relatives. Combining the basic science of an introductory text with accurate, comprehensive detail, the Encyclopedia is a reliable first source of reference for students and working professionals. Coverage includes insect classification, behavior, ecology, genetics and evolution, physiology, and management, and references to relevant literature. All the major arthropod groups are addressed, along with many important families and species. The Encyclopedia places special emphasis on insect relationships with people, medical entomology, biological control and insect pathology. This important work also presents biographical sketches of hundreds of entomologists who have made important contributions to the discipline since its origin. The new Second Edition is fully indexed, and includes more than 120 color plates.

Swammerdam also used his microscope to study some of the internal systems of vertebrates (animals with a backbone). In 1658, he documented certain small particles that he observed in the blood of a frog, making this the first time that anyone had ever seen red blood cells. He discovered valves in the lymph system (a network of vessels that carry lymph throughout the body) of mammals and also studied the fertilization of eggs as well as their development into an embryo. Experimentally, he showed that the muscle removed from a frog's leg can be stimulated and made to contract. He also theorized and made an excellent guess about the role of oxygen in respiration. He even pioneered the practice of injecting dyes into a cadaver (a dead body) in order to better observe certain anatomical details. Unfortunately, Swammerdam never published his work and most of it went unknown during his lifetime. Since he had little or no income, he did without a great deal and actually suffered both physically and mentally. Eventually he became sick and undernourished, and with overwork and worry, he soon became depressed and mentally unstable. In 1673 he came under the influence of a cultlike figure to whom he remained devoted until his death at the age of forty-three. It was not until 1737 that the Dutch physician Hermann Boerhaave (1668-1738), discovered Swammerdam's work and paid to have it published. Titled the Bible of Nature, this two-volume Latin translation of his Dutch work contains some of the finest illustrations of insects ever produced and served to lay the foundation for entomology.

Today's entomology deals with a group of animals that are by far the largest of all the classes. There are more than 800,000 known species of insects, and it is estimated that there may be an equal number of still-unknown species. Insects belong to the phylum Arthropoda, which is considered the most successful group of animals on Earth. This is because insects have lived on Earth for about 350,000,000 years, while humans have been on Earth less than 2,000,000 years. While insects are considered pests by many people, they are in fact highly beneficial to humans in a number of ways. Insects perform many important functions in any given ecosystem (an area in which living things interact with each other and the environment). Many insects are soil-dwellers, wood-borers, and consumers of dead animals, and therefore help in the decomposition process (breaking things down) and in the recycling of nutrients. Many insects are eaten by fish and birds and are thus an important food source. Many insects kill and eat other insects, helping to regulate populations. Many flowering plants are dependent on the pollinating activities of bees, butterflies, and flies in order to reproduce. Insects also provide people with a number of useful products such as silk, wax, and honey. On the other hand, insects can be terribly harmful by causing huge losses of food and acting as transmitters of diseases to humans, plants, and animals.

Modern entomology has two aspects: the scientific side that simply wants to learn as much as possible about all insects, and the practical or applied side (often called economic entomology) that searches for methods to better control insects. This latter part of entomology investigates the physiology, development, genetics, diseases, and behavior of pest insects in order to discover new ways of controlling insect populations. For example, research on insect development has led to the use of specific chemicals that disrupt certain hormones important during metamorphosis (as when a caterpillar changes into a flying insect). Other investigations have shown ways to use chemicals to modify insects' behavior (and perhaps confuse them during their mating cycle). Such methods, when combined with traditional chemical pesticides, come under the term pest management. However, entomologists do not want to exterminate all insects. Rather, they hope to control and limit any bad effects insects may have. This is probably wise, since most people who study insects realize there are many good reasons why insects are beneficial to humans, and why insects are the most abundant and most successful animal group ever.

Most entomologists work in the field of economic entomology, which is also called applied entomology. They study the small minority of insects that are harmful to humans. Harmful insects include those that destroy crops and buildings and those that transmit diseases to humans. Insects that feed on plants such as grasshoppers destroy plant crops and timber. Other insects transmit plant diseases. Insects such as termites destroy wood buildings. Bloodsucking insects such as mosquitoes, lice, and fleas transmit some of the most serious infectious diseases in the world. These include malaria, dengue fever, yellow fever, bubonic plague, and typhus.

Entomology is the study of insects and their life cycles. Many insects live and feed on dead flesh, which is why entomology is relevant to forensic science . The forensic entomologist can help estimate time of death by looking at which insects are present on a corpse and where they are in their life cycle. Entomology can also shed light on the nature of injuries, whether a corpse has been moved, and whether drugs were involved in a death.

The Encyclopedia of Entomology brings together the expertise of more than 450 distinguished entomologists from 40 countries to provide a worldwide overview of insects and their close relatives. Combining the basic science of an introductory text with accurate, comprehensive detail, the Encyclopedia is a reliable first source of reference for students and working professionals. Coverage includes insect classification, behavior, ecology, genetics and evolution, physiology, and management, and references to relevant literature. All the major arthropod groups are addressed, along with many important families and species. The Encyclopedia places special emphasis on insect relationships with people, medical entomology, biological control and insect pathology. This important work also presents biographical sketches of hundreds of entomologists who have made important contributions to the discipline since its origin. The new Second Edition is fully indexed, and includes more than 120 color plates. The four-volume Encyclopedia of Entomology is a handy desk-top reference for entomologists, and a valuable source of information for scientists and students in agronomy, botany, disease biology, ecology, evolutionary biology, forestry, genetics, horticulture, parasitology, toxicology, and zoology. It is also available as an easily accessible, fully searchable online reference.

Updated, developed and reworked from Doug Kettle's seminal Medical and Veterinary Entomology, this major new reference presents vital information in encyclopedia format, with alphabetical entries and an extensive index to make key facts easy to find. This new treatment of the subject provides accessible content and up-to-date research, illustrated by line drawings and color photographs.

The Encyclopedia of Entomology brings together the expertise of over 450 distinguished entomologists from 40 countries to provide a global overview of insects and their close relatives. Designed as an introduction to this important and fascinating group of animals, The Encyclopedia of Entomology also provides detailed treatment of insect classification, behavior, ecology, genetics and evolution, physiology, and management, and links to the most important literature on the subject.All the major groups are treated, as are many important families and species. Special emphasis is directed to insect relationships with people, medical entomology, biological control and insect pathology, and the entomologists who have contributed significantly to the advancement of the discipline. This edition is fully indexed, and also includes over 120 color plates showing the beauty and diversity of insects from around the globe.Presented in four volumes, The Encyclopedia of Entomology is the most complete reference work in this field. It is a handy desk-top reference for entomologists, but also a valuable source of information for scientists and students in related areas of science such as agronomy, botany, disease biology, ecology, evolutionary biology, forestry, genetics, horticulture, parasitology, toxicology, and zoology. 041b061a72