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The most diverse insect groups appear to have coevolved with flowering plants. Adult insects typically move about by walking and flying; some can swim. Insects are the only invertebrates that can achieve sustained powered flight; insect flight evolved just once.
The trait that is common to all invertebrates is the absence of a vertebral column (backbone): this creates a distinction between invertebrates and vertebrates. The distinction is one of convenience only; it is not based on any clear biologically homologous trait, any more than the common trait of having wings functionally unites insects, bats ...
Herbivory is of extreme ecological importance and prevalence among insects.Perhaps one third (or 500,000) of all described species are herbivores. [4] Herbivorous insects are by far the most important animal pollinators, and constitute significant prey items for predatory animals, as well as acting as major parasites and predators of plants; parasitic species often induce the formation of galls.
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Plants evolved chemical defenses against this herbivory and the insects in turn evolved mechanisms to deal with plant toxins. [5] These toxins limit the diet breadth of herbivores, and evolving mechanisms to nonetheless continue herbivory is an important part of maintaining diet breadth in insects, and so in their evolutionary history as a whole.
In addition, Darwin collected many species of invertebrate during his time aboard HMS Beagle; many of the specimens collected were insects. Using these collections, he was able to study sexual dimorphism, geographic distribution of species, and mimicry; all of these concepts influenced Darwin's theory of evolution. Unfortunately, a firm popular ...
Insects, like all arthropods, ... The stylets are needle-like projections used to penetrate plant and animal tissues. ... 22–24 Insects are the only invertebrates ...
Insects (from Latin insectum) are hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum . Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton , a three-part body ( head , thorax and abdomen ), three pairs of jointed legs , compound eyes , and a pair of antennae .