Figure 1: Mantid Cannabilism
Insect Cannibalism- is it common?
Yep! It sure is, and here's a little preview brought to us by New Atlantis WILD (2013):
Figure 2: Mantid Cannabilism YouTube
While the mantids provide a great example of insect cannibalism it is most definitely not limited to them. Cannibalism is surprisingly quite common among the insects and occurs in BOTH predatory and herbivorous species (Capinera, 2008). Cannibalism has been documented in numerous insects including insects from the following orders:
Hymenoptera (bees, ants and wasps)
Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies)
Orthoptera (crickets, katydids, grasshoppers and locusts)
Lepidoptera(moths and butterflies)
Diptera (true flies)
Trichoptera (caddisfly)
Hempitera (true bugs)
Neutoptera (lacewings)
Coleoptera (beetles)
Thysanoptera (thrips)
(Capinera, 2008).
And when you think about it, that's a lot of insects :
Hymenoptera (bees, ants and wasps)
Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies)
Orthoptera (crickets, katydids, grasshoppers and locusts)
Lepidoptera(moths and butterflies)
Diptera (true flies)
Trichoptera (caddisfly)
Hempitera (true bugs)
Neutoptera (lacewings)
Coleoptera (beetles)
Thysanoptera (thrips)
(Capinera, 2008).
And when you think about it, that's a lot of insects :
Figure 3: Orders that display cannabilism
Cannibalism doesn't just occur between adults either, it is also present in the larvae and nymphs of different species (Church and Sherratt, 1996).
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