Survival Mechanisms of Insects

Camouflage

• Insects that use camouflage, such as the praying mantis, walking sticks, moths and butterflies, are well adapted to hide from predators. Some insects have evolved to resemble leaves, sticks and flower petals. They blend into the surroundings to avoid detection by predators. The walking stick has developed a segmented body and behavior adaptation so that it not only looks like a stick, but also moves like a stick swaying in the breeze. The walking stick uses its camouflage to avoid being eaten and to sneak up on its prey.

Mimicry

• An effective survival mechanism is mimicry. Butterflies, such as the viceroy, adapted colors and designs to mimic the unpalatable monarch butterfly. Like the monarch, the viceroy butterfly is also unpalatable, but both species have adapted to resemble each other by Mullerian mimicry. One type of grasshopper mimics the aggressive tiger beetle, which predators avoid. The elephant hawk moth caterpillar resembles a snake. When harmless insects mimic the appearance and behavior of unpalatable, poisonous or dangerous insects, this is called Batesian mimicry.

Reproduction

• One of the most successful adaptations is the ability to reproduce in huge numbers. Insects may produce from several hundred to thousands of eggs. The vast number of offspring ensures that a large percentage of the young insects will survive. Many insects undergo a transformation called metamorphosis. The insects hatch from the egg in a larval stage resembling worms. The next stage is the pupal stage when the larva encases itself in a hard shell. Most insects survive cold winters in this shell, and the adult insect emerges in the spring.

Winter Adaptations

• Some insects survive the freezing temperatures of winter by producing a substance that prevents water crystals from binding together inside their cells. Most insect larvae and some adult insects have adapted to produce glycerol which prevents the ice crystals in the cells from binding together and rupturing cell membranes. Honeybees survive the winter by using their bodies and wings to produce heat for the colony. The monarch butterfly migrates to warmer southern regions.