Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
Adult. Cimex lectularius, or the common bed bug, is a species of Cimicidae.Its primary hosts are humans, and it is one of the world's major "nuisance pests." Although bed bugs can be infected with at least 28 human pathogens, no studies have found that the insects are capable of transmitting any of these to humans. [1]
They feed primarily on aquatic invertebrates such as other insects, but occasionally take small fish or tadpoles. The eggs, which are laid above the waterline in mud, decomposing vegetation, the stems of plants or rotting wood, are supplied with air by filamentous processes which vary in number among the genera. [3]
The Cimicidae are a family of small parasitic bugs that feed exclusively on the blood of warm-blooded animals. They are called cimicids or, loosely, bed bugs, though the latter term properly refers to the most well-known member of the family, Cimex lectularius, the common bed bug, and its tropical relation Cimex hemipterus. [2]
A small proportion of the species are serious pests of commercially important crops. Some of these serve as vectors for over 20 viruses that cause plant disease, especially the Tospoviruses. Many flower-dwelling species bring benefits as pollinators, with some predatory thrips feeding on small insects or mites. In the right conditions, such as ...
The adult stage of a caddisfly may only survive for a few weeks; many species do not feed as adults and die soon after breeding, but some species are known to feed on nectar. [19] The winged insects are nocturnal and provide food for night-flying birds, bats, small mammals, amphibians and arthropods.
Fairyflies are very tiny insects, like most chalcidoid wasps, mostly ranging from 0.5 to 1.0 mm (0.020 to 0.039 in) long. They include the world's smallest known insect , with a body length of only 0.139 mm (0.0055 in), and the smallest known flying insect , only 0.15 mm (0.0059 in) long.
Humans have interacted with the Hemiptera for millennia. Some species, including many aphids, are significant agricultural pests, damaging crops by sucking the sap. Others harm humans more directly as vectors of serious viral diseases. The bed bug is a persistent parasite of humans, and some kissing bugs can transmit Chagas disease.
Less is known about the feeding of the oceanic species, but they appear to mostly eat zooplankton, with other recorded items being floating insects, fish eggs and larvae, and dead jellyfish. [1] [3] Small prey is caught and eaten by a single Halobates, but larger prey such as small fish may be eaten by three or four Halobates at once.