Author: Brian

Still at a low magnification of 89X, this scanning electron micrograph (SEM) depicts some of the morphologic exoskeletal features located at the distal end of an adult “figeater” beetle’s, Cotinis mutabilis leg. Depicted here was the claw-like tip of the insect’s 5th tarsomere, as well as its accompanying empodium. This appendicular configuration affords the beetle a secure grasp of objects within its environmental domain, such as foliage or food.

Due to the jointed nature of this organism’s leg configuration, it is classified in the phylum, Arthropoda, i.e., “Arthro” = jointed, and “poda” = legs. This beetle was found in the Decatur, Georgia suburbs.

The dorsum of the adult figeater beetle is a drab green color, while its ventral surface is a vivid iridescent green. Their diet mainly consists of soft, overly ripe fruits including figs, hence its name. However, it’s the larval phase of this insect, which wrecks more havoc upon agricultural crops than adults, for the larvae, which burrow into the soils, will feed upon the crop roots, thereby, killing the fruit-bearing plants.

Magnified 47X, this scanning electron micrograph (SEM) revealed morphologic details found at the distal tip of this adult “figeater” beetle’s, Cotinis mutabilis, antenna. Known as a “lamellate” type of antennae, the distal three sensorial segments have been folded over one another, which can be seen here in this image. This morphology is typically found in members of the family Scarabaeidae.

The antennae provide the insect with data indicative of changes encountered in its environment such as chemical, thermal, and tactile queues.

Sometimes referred to as a “junebug, this insect is a member of the taxonomic family, Scarabaeidae, or dung beetles. Due to the jointed nature of this organism’s leg configuration, it is classified in the phylum, Arthropoda, i.e., “Arthro” = jointed, and “poda” = legs. This beetle was found in the Decatur, Georgia suburbs.

The dorsum of the adult figeater beetle is a drab green color, while its ventral surface is a vivid iridescent green. Their diet mainly consists of soft, overly ripe fruits including figs, hence its name. However, it’s the larval phase of this insect, which wrecks more havoc upon agricultural crops than adults, for the larvae, which burrow into the soils, will feed upon the crop roots, thereby, killing the fruit-bearing plants.

At a low magnification of only 22X, this scanning electron micrograph (SEM) depicted some of the morphologic exoskeletal features located on the head region of an adult “figeater” beetle, Cotinis mutabilis. Sometimes referred to as a “junebug, this insect is a member of the taxonomic family, Scarabaeidae, or dung beetles.

Equipped with “lamellate” type antennae, the distal three sensorial segments have been folded over one another, which can be seen here in this image. This morphology is typically found in members of the family Scarabaeidae.

The antennae provide the insect with data indicative of changes encountered in its environment such as chemical, thermal, and tactile queues. This beetle was found in the Decatur, Georgia suburbs.

The dorsum of the adult figeater beetle is a drab green color, while its ventral surface is a vivid iridescent green. Their diet mainly consists of soft, overly ripe fruits including figs, hence its name. However, it’s the larval phase of this insect, which wrecks more havoc upon agricultural crops than adults, for the larvae, which burrow into the soils, will feed upon the crop roots, thereby, killing the fruit-bearing plants.

Also, note the numerous sensorial hair-like structures adorning the insect’s head, which are known as “setae”. These are not hairs in the mammalian sense, which are composed of keratin, but are exoskeletal adnexae, composed of chitin, as is the exoskeleton itself. These setae provide the figeater with information indicative of changes within its immediate environment such as thermal, tactile, and chemical fluctuations.

Under a low magnification of 56X, this scanning electron micrograph (SEM) depicted some of the exoskeletal morphologic characteristics displayed on the head region of an unidentified beetle found deceased in the suburbs of Decatur, Georgia. In this particular view, the distal segments of the insect’s left antenna were highlighted. The antennae are composed of a proximal “scape”, a single “pedicle”, and the distal, multisegmented “flagellum”.

The scape attaches the sensory organ to the head region, and the pedicle joins the distal, jointed, flagellum to the scape. In many species of beetles, depending upon its morphology, the flagellum is further subdivided into a club, composed of the fused apical “flagellomeres”, which is what is displayed here, and the “funicle”, or “funniculus”, composed of the flagellomeres between the club and the scape.

As a member of the Class Insecta, and Phylum Arthropoda, this beetle was supported by its jointed exoskeleton, from which its Phylum, Arthro = jointed, and poda = legs, devired its name.

As arthropods, beetles possess an exoskeleton composed of chitin, which is a molecule made up of bound units of acetylglucosamine, joined in such a way as to allow for increased points at which hydrogen bonding can occur. In this way chitin provides increased strength, and durability as an exoskeletal foundation.

Note the numerous “hairs” growing up, out of the organism’s exoskeletal surface. These structures are sensorial in nature, and are known as “setae”, providing the insect with information about its environment including thermal changes, changes in wind direction, and the presence of chemicals such as poisons or pheromones. These setae are not composed of keratin, as in the case of mammals, but like the exoskeleton itself, are composed of chitin.