What Is Insect Architecture?

The term insect architecture refers to any form of design or construction created by insects in nature. While existing in their natural habitat, insects have to design structures that can help with their basic needs: securing and storing food, raising offspring (especially in colonies), and escaping predators. Insects may take a while to complete these structures, but they always display amazing engineering skills in every finished product. Insects can also repair damage to their structures, which happens quite often due to external forces. Insects will try to defend these structures because they are essential to survival.

Types of Insect Architecture 

There are numerous examples in nature where insects have showcased their engineering skills. Here are some of the most common designs in insect architecture. 

• Beehives: Bees are responsible for the most famous wonder in the world of insect architecture, which is their hives. A beehive is a small wax structure congested with hexadecimal cells built with wax secreted from their bodies on both sides. The holes in a beehive vary in size and can store the queen, honey, pollen, and water or raise workers, broods and drones. Usually, the size and position of the cells determine what they are used to store. Bees have special glands and mouthparts and the ability to communicate with each other, making it possible to complete such a complex project. Other insects, like wasps, also create hives with wax, but it is less elegant than the hexadecimal repetition in beehives.
• Leaf Structures: Rather than build wax structures, some insects use natural materials like leaves to build structures. These insects either secret silk or any adhesive substance that can be used to fasten the leaves together. The insects have to be equipped with solid mouthparts and work together to manipulate each leaf into the required shape. Leaf structures do not have structural integrity or durability, unlike most habitats, so they are often temporary measures. A habitat made of leaves is very susceptible to attacks from predators.
• Webs and Cocoons: Although spiders are not insects, they are getting an honourable mention on this list because of their web. The spider web is an impressive sight and a mystery science is still trying to uncover. It is always inspiring how a single spider can spin an intricate hanging structure made of silk with little support. Upon extensive research, scientists discovered that spider silk is a very tough material, even more potent than steel. Thanks to its silk glands, the spider creates a web to hunt and trap insects and spins cocoons around its prey to store it for later.
• Termite Mounds: Termites prove their destructive abilities when attacking wood but show their creative side when defining details in their mounds. These mounds are enormous structures of soil and saliva that can grow meters tall. The mixture acts like a makeshift concrete material that protects from impact and regulates the inner temperature of the mound. The termite queen resides in the most protected region deep within the mound. Ants create a similar structure to termites but use a different set of materials, and the structure is mainly under the soil. Both ants and termites have strong mouthparts for excavation, which helps construct mounds.
• Insect Galleries: Wood galleries are another entry on the list of microarchitectures in the insect world. Insects like termites, beetles and ants leave tiny and complex trails in wood during their infestation. The shape and size of the resulting gallery depend on the wood and the insect at work. Unfortunately, galleries weaken the structure of wood, limiting its usefulness. That is why protecting the wood from insect attacks is very important. Insects need a robust mandible, chemical senses, and behavioural adaptations to create such habitat in timber.

Benefits of Insect Architectures in Nature

The primary functions of an insect architecture serve the best interest of an insect or a colony, but there are a few benefits apart from that. 

• It Enriches the Soil: Mounds and hills open up the soil to gain nutrients and become more fertile. It also improves the structure of the soil, especially its water-retaining ability. Food stored in ant hills and building materials like leaves add nutrients directly to the soil.
• It Generates Habitats for Insects: All of the architectures mentioned so far serve as a habitat for insects, among other functions. Habitats like mounds and hives can be home to thousands of insects working together. The insects built these structures themselves, so it is advantageous for them when they go against prey or predators. 
• It Helps with Pollination: While going about the activities required to sustain their architecture, some insects help pollinate flowers. Pollination is a critical process in the propagation of plants, which is essential for the ecosystem. Bees are the major contributors to the pollination of plant flowers.

Potential Challenges with Insect Architecture in Nature

You may experience the following if insects go unchecked with their architecture.

• It can Cause Damage: Insects damage valuable things such as buildings and crops in their quest to build their utopia. Unfortunately, the damages may lead to severe losses or even danger in the case of damaged structures in buildings. A grave blow to human agriculture will also affect other areas of our society.
• It may Lead to Diseases: These insects may threaten human health if they are venomous or disease carriers. Another problem with the effect of insects on agriculture is the contamination of food on a large scale. Humans must deal with significant insect structures in their environs to avoid damage and diseases.

Also, if an insect structure is efficient enough in an ecosystem, it places its resident insects on the food chain, disturbing the ecosystem. Wood-consuming insects cause severe damage to several trees if they are not curbed.

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Alligator beetle

A real flying crocodile lives in the rainforests of Mexico, Central and South America. This is what the locals call the Suriname lanternfly (Fulgora laternaria). But it also has other names among the locals. For example, some people see its strange shape as resembling a peanut pod and call it a peanut beetle. In fact, this insect belongs to the cicadas. It reaches the size of 85-90 millimeters with a wingspan of 100-150 millimeters.

On the wings of the insect there is a pattern in the form of huge eyes. Obviously, this is necessary for protection against all kinds of predators. If the crocodile head does not frighten the predator, then the wings with huge eyes will come to the rescue.

Panda ant

In fact, this is not an ant, but a member of the family of wingless wasps living in Chile. The females of these wasps are wingless and look like huge hairy ants. They are called pandas because they really resemble Chinese pandas. These wasps scare away predators with their bright color. When a panda ant senses danger, it begins to make a sharp sound, similar to a squeak. This wasp stings painfully, but not fatally, although in Chile it is nicknamed the killer of cows.

The turtle beetle

These beetles are very similar to small turtles, which is why scientists gave them this name. These strange insects, only 7-8 mm in size, have an unusual shape and color of the shield. If you look at the insect from above, you might think that the beetle has been crucified, which is why they are also called the “holy cross” beetle. But the most interesting thing is that turtle beetles can change the color of the shield, thanks to a special liquid in the transparent outer shell.

Giraffe weevil

This small black bug lives in Madagascar. Its Latin name Giraffa camelopardalis clearly indicates its resemblance to a giraffe. Its body length does not exceed 2.5 centimeters. In these bizarre beetles, only males have such a long neck, while females have a much smaller one. The giraffe weevil belongs to the family of tube beetles. The male needs such a long neck to build nests and compete for a female. The female weevil lays her eggs in leaves, which she first rolls into a tube.

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In the wake of the flurry of attention this looming ecological disaster has generated, an even more complex picture has emerged – with one gap in our understanding that is strikingly clear. Despite the tropical and subtropical regions being home to an estimated 85% of the Earth’s insects, what happens in these regions is critically under-studied.

Dams and declines

To understand insect decline requires long-term datasets that are rare, especially in the global south. in our new study, we present one of the most comprehensive known datasets of subtropical freshwater insects over 20 years. We found a complete decline in insect abundance across all aquatic insect groups studied, including midges, mayflies and dragonflies.

The decline occurred in the canals, lakes, rivers and bays of one of the largest freshwater systems in South America, the Paraná River floodplain. At the same time, we found that the number of invasive fish has increased and the chemical composition of the water has become more unbalanced – all environmental changes associated with the construction of dams.

There are more than 130 dams along the Paraná and its tributaries. The most significant is Itaipú, the second largest hydroelectric dam in the world. Located in Brazil and Paraguay, its reservoir is so large that when it was full, it submerged one of the largest waterfalls on Earth, the Guaira Falls. The elimination of this natural and geographical barrier between Lower and Upper Paraná has led to massive invasions of fish: many of them are insect predators.

At the same time, the dams block the flow of sediment and nutrients, disrupting the chemical composition of the water and making the water clearer. Most aquatic insects are dark or spotted to camouflage themselves in turbid water. The increased water clarity weakened their ability to hide, making them even more vulnerable to being eaten by invading fish.

Roughly 70% of Brazil’s electricity comes from hydropower, and hydroelectric power plants will be important in the transition away from fossil fuels. However, dam construction can have serious environmental and social impacts. Our research shows that the negative impacts of the dam can occur long after forests have been flooded and local communities have been displaced.

The tropical data gap

While the tropics and subtropics are the most biologically diverse regions on the planet, they are also among the most threatened. Their rich natural resources are under enormous pressure to provide food, water and energy to some of the fastest growing people on the planet and developing countries.

Despite this, the logistical challenges of studying insects in such a biodiverse region, combined with the longstanding historical inequalities around where monitoring is conducted, means that the remaining tropics are underrepresented in insect decline research.

The lack of long-term datasets from the tropics and subtropics can distort the already complex picture of how insect declines are occurring across the planet. One of the most comprehensive studies to date on global insect decline compares 166 studies spanning more than a decade across five continents.

It was found that the number of terrestrial insects is indeed decreasing, but the number of aquatic insects is increasing. However, of the 68 freshwater insect datasets in their analysis, only 7% came from the tropics. This apparent success is distorted by the large number of studies from Europe and North America where improved water quality and effective policies have increased aquatic insect populations.

Our results contradict the findings of this study. Aquatic insects are declining in the Paraná River system, which drains much of southern South America, emphasizing the importance of better tropical data. Tropical and subtropical aquatic insects may be at greater risk from human activities than their counterparts in more northern regions. Freshwater regions are among the world’s most threatened ecosystems and should be a target for global conservation efforts.

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Ladybugs

Many of us have been familiar with ladybugs since childhood. Everyone knows that this is a harmless insect, and few people know that they feed on ticks, mealybugs, whiteflies, and its larvae feed on aphids. Moreover, ladybug larvae have an excellent appetite and eat up to 150 aphids per day.

If aphids appear on your site, do not rush to use insecticides. You can use folk remedies, such as soapy water, and additionally attract ladybugs by spraying the affected plant with sugar syrup.

The insect is also attracted to the aroma of marigolds, dill, caraway seeds, pelargonium, and cilantro. Planting these plants between beds of cucumbers, cabbage, and zucchini will be an excellent prevention of aphid damage.

The Fazenda agricultural store offers high-quality seeds of vegetables, herbs and ornamental plants. The website catalog offers a wide range of crops with descriptions and photos at the most affordable price.

In addition to the usual orange color with black dots, the class of ladybugs includes individuals with yellow and black color. The former have black spots, and the latter have red or yellow spots.

Goldfinch

The adult insect looks like a small butterfly with translucent green wings with light streaks. The insect and its larvae feed on aphids, and the offspring of the insect eat the pest in huge volumes. Because of this, some farms specially breed the lacewing.

During the season, the lacewing lays up to two clutches of eggs. They can be seen under the leaves of plants in the form of thin hanging threads. The hatched sticky things fall to the ground and begin to feed on pests.

Galia afidimiza

A small fly a few millimeters in size repeatedly lays eggs during the season. The hatched eggs actively feed on aphids for two weeks. It takes no effort to attract the Aphidimysis gall midge to your garden.

Beetles

Everyone has probably seen this beetle with a black shell with a greenish tint. The insect moves around quite quickly and eats everything that comes its way: caterpillars, moths, scoops, fly larvae and other pests. These orderly beetles eat up to 300 units of any animal during the summer.

The beetle lays its eggs in moist soil. They look like round rice grains. The larvae that emerge look like a worm due to the lack of a shell, have a pair of legs in the front and powerful jaws. They also actively feed on insects.

For the winter, the beetle settles down under stones, firewood, and hides in the depths of sawdust or shavings.

Staphylococcus aureus

The black, agile beetle will raise its abdomen in case of danger, which makes it resemble a scorpion. Staphylines are useful beetles in the garden, not only because they eat insect pests. The beetle larvae also feed on the larvae and pupae of flies and caterpillars.

The insect prefers a dark and damp place: deep in the masonry with firewood, under dry leaves, it can be found in a manure or compost heap.

Useful flies

Tortoise flies and tahini flies also come to the aid of gardeners. Tarantula flies have tenacious legs and a powerful proboscis that can easily pierce the shells of pests such as May beetles and wasps. They also actively feed on larvae found in the soil.

Beneficial tahini flies have black hairs on their bodies and transparent wings. Females lay eggs directly on caterpillars, larvae of Colorado potato beetles, weevils, and sawflies. The emerging parasitic larvae feed on the flesh of their hosts.

Colorado potato beetle

Quite useful beetles in the garden, they live in abundance on trees, feeding on pests in the bark: mustaches, weevils, bark beetles, bark beetles, sharpeners and their larvae. The insect has an elongated body, brown legs with villi, black and red color with a wide white stripe in the lower part.

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