View source for Entomology

{{short description|Scientific study of insects}}
{{distinguish|text=[[etymology]], the study of the history of words}}
{|align=right
|<imagemap>
File:Insecta Diversity.jpg|300px
rect 0 0 333 232 [[Panorpa communis|Common scorpionfly]]
rect 0 232 333 470 [[Emperor (dragonfly)|Blue emperor]]
rect 0 696 333 470 [[Aularches miliaris|Coffee locust]]
rect 0 928 333 700 [[European earwig]]
rect 0 1160 333 930 [[Drosophila melanogaster|Vinegar fly]]
rect 0 1392 333 1160 [[German wasp]]

rect 666 0 333 232 [[Rhithrogena germanica|March brown mayfly]]
rect 666 232 333 470 [[Thopha saccata|Double drummer]]
rect 666 696 333 470 [[Dog flea]]
rect 666 928 333 700 [[Papilio machaon|Old World swallowtail]]
rect 666 1160 333 930 [[European mantis]]
rect 666 1392 333 1160 [[Phyllium|Phyllium philippinicum]]

rect 999 0 666 232 [[Head louse]]
rect 999 232 666 470 [[Silverfish]]
rect 999 696 666 470 [[Chrysopa perla]]
rect 999 928 666 700 [[European stag beetle]]
rect 999 1160 666 930 [[Hodotermitidae|Northern harvester termite]]
rect 999 1392 666 1160 [[Dichrostigma flavipes]]
</imagemap>{{center|Diversity of insects from different orders}}
|}
'''Entomology''' (from [[Ancient Greek]] ἔντομον (''éntomon''), meaning "insect", and [[-logy]] from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study") <ref name="Liddell 1980">{{cite book | author = [[Henry George Liddell|Liddell, Henry George]] and [[Robert Scott (philologist)|Robert Scott]] | year = 1980 | title = [[A Greek-English Lexicon]] | publisher = [[Oxford University Press]] | location = United Kingdom | isbn = 0-19-910207-4| edition = Abridged }}</ref> is the branch of [[zoology]] that focuses on [[insect|insects]]. Those who study entomology are known as entomologists. In the past, the term ''insect'' was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of [[animal]]s in other [[arthropod]] groups, such as [[arachnid]]s, [[myriapod]]s, and [[crustaceans]]. The field is also referred to as insectology in American English, while in British English insectology implies the study of the relationships between insects and humans.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/insectology |title=Insectology |publisher=Collins |website=www.collinsdictionary.com |access-date=8 November 2024 }}</ref>

Over 1.3{{nbsp}}million insect [[species]] have been described by entomology.<ref name="Chapman">{{cite book |author=Chapman, A. D. |year=2009 |edition=2 |title=Numbers of living species in Australia and the World |pages=60pp |publisher=Canberra: [[Australian Biological Resources Study]] |isbn=978-0-642-56850-2 |url=http://www.deh.gov.au/biodiversity/abrs/publications/other/species-numbers/index.html |archive-url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20090519170802/http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/abrs/publications/other/species%2Dnumbers/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2009-05-19 |access-date=2007-10-26 }}</ref>

==History==
{{For timeline}}
[[File:TRES18481.jpg|thumb|Plate from ''Transactions of the Entomological Society'', 1848]]
[[File:Compilation of 100 Trigonopterus species - 1742-9994-10-15-3.png|thumb|These 100 ''[[Trigonopterus]]'' species were described simultaneously using [[DNA barcoding]].]]

Entomology is rooted in nearly all human [[culture]]s from [[prehistoric]] times, primarily in the context of [[agriculture]] (especially [[biological control]] and [[beekeeping]]).<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Smith |first1=Edward H. |last2=Kennedy |first2=George G |title=Chapter 119 - History of Entomology |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Insects (Second Edition) |date=2009 |pages=449-458 |doi=10.1016/B978-0-12-374144-8.00128-4 |publisher=Academic Press |isbn=978-0-12-374144-8 |editor1-last=Resh |editor1-first=Vincent H.|editor2-last=Cardé |editor2-first=Ring T.}}</ref> The natural Roman philosopher [[Pliny the Elder]] (23–79 CE) wrote a book on the kinds of insects,<ref>{{citation|title=Naturalis Historia|url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0137%3Abook%3D11}}</ref> while the scientist [[Grammarians of Kufa|of Kufa]], [[Ibn al-A'rābī]] (760–845 CE) wrote a book on flies, {{transliteration|ar|Kitāb al-Dabāb}} ({{lang|ar|كتاب الذباب}}). However scientific study in the modern sense began only relatively recently, in the 16th century.<ref>Antonio Saltini, ''Storia delle scienze agrarie'', 4 vols, Bologna 1984–89, {{ISBN|88-206-2412-5}}, {{ISBN|88-206-2413-3}}, {{ISBN|88-206-2414-1}}, {{ISBN|88-206-2415-X}}</ref> [[Ulisse Aldrovandi]]'s {{lang|la|De Animalibus Insectis}} (Concerning Insect Animals) was published in 1602. Microscopist [[Jan Swammerdam]] published ''History of Insects'', correctly describing the reproductive organs of insects and [[Metamorphosis (biology)|metamorphosis]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Entomology |date=21 March 2024 |url=https://www.britannica.com/science/entomology |publisher=Encyclopaedia Britannica}}</ref> In 1705, [[Maria Sibylla Merian]] published the book {{lang|la|Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium}} about the tropical insects of [[Surinam (Dutch colony)|Dutch Surinam]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Lepidoptera, moths and butterflies: Evolution, Systematics and Biogeography |last=Kristensen |first=Niels P. |editor= Kristensen, Niels P.|series=Volume 4, Part 35 of Handbuch der Zoologie:Eine Naturgeschichte der Stämme des Tierreiches. Arthropoda: Insecta|year=1999 |publisher=Walter de Gruyter |isbn=978-3-11-015704-8 |page= 1 |chapter=Historical Introduction}}</ref>

Early entomological works associated with the naming and classification of species followed the practice of maintaining [[Cabinet of curiosities|cabinets of curiosity]], predominantly in Europe. This collecting fashion led to the formation of natural history societies, exhibitions of private collections, and journals for recording communications and the documentation of new species. Many of the collectors tended to be from the aristocracy, and there developed a trade involving collectors around the world and traders. This has been called the "era of heroic entomology". [[William Kirby (entomologist)|William Kirby]] is widely considered as the father of entomology in England. In collaboration with [[William Spence (entomologist)|William Spence]], he published a definitive entomological encyclopedia, ''Introduction to Entomology'', regarded as the subject's foundational text. He also helped found the [[Royal Entomological Society]] in London in 1833, one of the earliest such societies in the world; earlier antecedents, such as the [[Aurelian (entomology)|Aurelian society]] date back to the 1740s. In the late 19th century, the growth of agriculture, and colonial trade spawned the "era of economic entomology" which created the professional entomologist associated with the rise of the university and training in the field of biology.<ref>{{cite journal|author=Elias, Scott A.|year=2014|title=A Brief History of the Changing Occupations and Demographics of Coleopterists from the 18th Through the 20th Century|journal=Journal of the History of Biology|volume=47|issue=2|pages=213–242|doi=10.1007/s10739-013-9365-9|jstor=43863376|pmid=23928824|s2cid=24812002}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bq05ecMx-owC&pg=PA27|title=Bugs and the Victorians|publisher=Yale University Press|author=Clark, John F.M.|year=2009|pages=26–27|isbn=978-0300150919}}</ref>

Entomology developed rapidly in the 19th and 20th centuries and was studied by large numbers of people, including such notable figures as [[Charles Darwin]], [[Jean-Henri Fabre]], [[Vladimir Nabokov]], [[Karl von Frisch]] (winner of the 1973 [[Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine]]),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://nobelprize.org/medicine/laureates/1973/frisch-lecture.html|title=Karl von Frisch – Nobel Lecture: Decoding the Language of the Bee}}</ref> and twice [[Pulitzer Prize]] winner [[E. O. Wilson]].

There has also been a history of people becoming entomologists through museum curation and research assistance,<ref name="Starrs NMNH">{{cite web|last1=Starrs|first1=Siobhan|title=A Scientist and a Tinkerer – A Story in a Frame|url=http://nmnh.typepad.com/100years/2010/08/a-scientist-and-a-tinkerer-a-story-in-a-frame.html|website=National Museum of Natural History Unearthed|publisher=National Museum of Natural History|access-date=19 March 2017|date=10 August 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170319195756/http://nmnh.typepad.com/100years/2010/08/a-scientist-and-a-tinkerer-a-story-in-a-frame.html|archive-date=19 March 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> such as [[Sophie Lutterlough]] at the Smithsonian [[National Museum of Natural History]]. Insect identification is an increasingly common hobby, with [[butterfly|butterflies]]<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Prudic |first1=KL |last2=McFarland |first2=KP |last3=Oliver |first3=JC |last4=Hutchinson |first4=RA |last5=Long |first5=EC |last6=Kerr |first6=JT |last7=Larrivée |first7=M |title=eButterfly: Leveraging Massive Online Citizen Science for Butterfly Consevation. |journal=Insects |date=18 May 2017 |volume=8 |issue=2 |page=53 |doi=10.3390/insects8020053 |doi-access=free |pmid=28524117 |pmc=5492067 }}</ref> and (to a lesser extent) [[dragonfly|dragonflies]] being the most popular.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bried |first1=Jason |last2=Ries |first2=Leslie |last3=Smith |first3=Brenda |last4=Patten |first4=Michael |last5=Abbott |first5=John |last6=Ball-Damerow |first6=Joan |last7=Cannings |first7=Robert |last8=Cordero-Rivera |first8=Adolfo |last9=Córdoba-Aguilar |first9=Alex |last10=De Marco |first10=Paulo |last11=Dijkstra |first11=Klaas-Douwe |last12=Dolný |first12=Aleš |last13=van Grunsven |first13=Roy |last14=Halstead |first14=David |last15=Harabiš |first15=Filip |last16=Hassall |first16=Christopher |last17=Jeanmougin |first17=Martin |last18=Jones |first18=Colin |last19=Juen |first19=Leandro |last20=Kalkman |first20=Vincent |last21=Kietzka |first21=Gabriella |last22=Mazzacano |first22=Celeste Searles |last23=Orr |first23=Albert |last24=Perron |first24=Mary Ann |last25=Rocha-Ortega |first25=Maya |last26=Sahlén |first26=Göran |last27=Samways |first27=Michael |last28=Siepielski |first28=Adam |last29=Simaika |first29=John |last30=Suhling |first30=Frank |last31=Underhill |first31=Les |last32=White |first32=Erin |title=Towards Global Volunteer Monitoring of Odonate Abundance |journal=BioScience |date=16 October 2020 |volume=70 |issue=10 |pages=914–923 |doi=10.1093/biosci/biaa092 |url=https://academic.oup.com/bioscience/article/70/10/914/5899941?login=false|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

Most insects can easily be allocated to [[order (biology)|order]], such as [[Hymenoptera]] (bees, wasps, and ants) or [[Coleoptera]] (beetles). However, identifying to genus or species is usually only possible through the use of [[identification key]]s and [[monograph]]s. Because the class [[Insecta]] contains a very large number of species (over 330,000 species of beetles alone) and the characteristics distinguishing them are unfamiliar, and often subtle (or invisible without a microscope), this is often very difficult even for a specialist. This has led to the development of [[automated species identification]] systems targeted on insects, for example, [[Digital Automated Identification SYstem (DAISY)|Daisy]], ABIS, SPIDA and Draw-wing.
[[File:DSIR archive G23 175.jpg|thumb|Entomologist collecting in the field.]]

==Applications==

===Pest control===
{{further information|Insect pest control}}
In 1994, the Entomological Society of America launched a new [[professional certification]] program for the pest control industry called the Associate Certified Entomologist (ACE). To qualify as a "true entomologist" an individual would normally require an advanced degree, with most entomologists pursuing a PhD. While not true entomologists in the traditional sense, individuals who attain the ACE certification may be referred to as ACEs or Associate Certified Entomologists.<ref name="c855">{{cite web | title=ACE Certification | website=ACE Certification | url=https://entocert.org/ace | access-date=2024-06-03}}</ref>

As such, other credential programs managed by the Entomological Society of America have varying credential requirements. These different programs are known as Public Health Entomology (PHE), Certified IPM Technicians (CITs), and Board Certified Entomologists (BCEs) (ESA Certification Corporation). To be qualified in public health entomology (PHE), one must pass an exam on the types of arthropods that can spread diseases and lead to medical complications (ESA Certification Corporation). These individuals also have to "agree to ascribe to a code of ethical behavior" (ESA Certification Corporation). Individuals who are planning to become Certified IPM Technicians (CITs), need to obtain at around 1–4 years of experience in pest management and successfully pass an exam, that is based on the information, that they are acquainted with (ESA Certification Corporation). Like in Public Health Entomology (PHE), those who want to become Certified IPM Technicians (CITs) also have to "agree to ascribe to a code of ethical behavior" (ESA Certification Corporation). These individuals must also be approved to use pesticides (ESA Certification Corporation). For those who plan on becoming Board Certified Entomologists (BCEs), individuals have to pass two exams and "agree to ascribe to a code of ethical behavior" (ESA Certification Corporation). As with this, they also have to fulfill a certain amount of educational requirements every 12 months (ESA Certification Corporation).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Roster {{!}} Certification - Entomological Society of America |url=https://entocert.org/roster |access-date=2023-10-08 |website=entocert.org |language=en}}</ref>

===Forensics===
{{main|Forensic entomology}}
[[Forensic entomology]] is a branch of [[forensic science]] that studies insects found on corpses or elsewhere around crime scenes. This includes studying the types of insects commonly found on [[cadaver]]s, their life cycles, their presence in different environments, and how insect assemblages change with [[decomposition]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Forensic Entomology |url=https://www.exploreforensics.co.uk/forensic-entomology.html#:~:text=Forensic%20entomologists%20study%20the%20kinds,has%20been%20there,%20if%20it |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090223193439/http://exploreforensics.co.uk/forensic-entomology.html#:~:text=Forensic%20entomologists%20study%20the%20kinds,has%20been%20there,%20if%20it |url-status=usurped |archive-date=February 23, 2009 |access-date=2022-04-10 |work=Explore Forensics}}</ref>

===Medicine===
{{main|Medical entomology}}
[[Medical entomology]] is focused upon [[insect]]s and [[arthropod]]s that impact human health. Veterinary entomology is included in this category, because many animal diseases can "jump species" and become a human health threat, for example, bovine encephalitis. Medical entomology also includes scientific research on the behavior, ecology, and [[epidemiology]] of arthropod disease [[Vector (epidemiology)|vectors]], and involves a tremendous outreach to the public, including local and state officials and other stake holders in the interest of public safety.

==Subdisciplines==
[[File:ENTO Museum Barcode.jpeg|thumb|Example of a collection barcode on a pinned beetle specimen]]
Many entomologists specialize in a single order or even a family of insects, and a number of these subspecialties are given their own generic names, typically (but not always) derived from the scientific name of the group:

* [[Coleopterology]] – [[beetle]]s
* [[Dipterology]] – [[Fly|flies]]
* [[Odonata|Odonatology]] – [[Odonata|dragonflies and damselflies]]
* [[Hemiptera|Hemipterology]] – [[Hemiptera|true bugs]]
* [[Isoptera|Isopterology]] – [[termite]]s
* [[Lepidopterology]] – [[moth]]s and [[butterfly|butterflies]]
* [[Melittology]] (or ''Apiology'') – [[bee]]s
* [[Myrmecology]] – [[ant]]s
* [[Orthopterology]] – [[grasshopper]]s, [[cricket (insect)|crickets]], etc.
* [[Trichoptera|Trichopterology]] – [[caddis flies|caddisflies]]
* [[Vespology]] – social [[wasps]]

==Organizations==
Like other scientific specialties, entomologists have a number of local, national, and international organizations. There are also many organizations specializing in specific subareas.
* [[Amateur Entomologists' Society]]
* [[British Entomological and Natural History Society]]
* [[Entomological Society of America]]
* [[Entomological Society of Canada]]
* [[Entomological Society of Japan]]
* [[Entomologischer Verein Krefeld]]
* [[Royal Entomological Society]]
* Australian Entomological Society<ref>[https://www.austentsoc.org.au/ Australian Entomological Society]</ref>
* Entomological Society of New Zealand<ref>[https://ento.org.nz/ Entomological Society of New Zealand]</ref>

==Research collection==
Here is a list of selected very large insect collections, housed in museums, universities, or research institutes.

===Asia===
* [[Zoological Survey of India]]

===Africa===
* Natal Museum, [[Pietermaritzburg]], South Africa<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nmsa.org.za|title=KwaZulu-Natal Museum}}</ref>

=== Australasia ===
[[File:LU Entomology Museum DSC8583.jpeg|thumb|The [[Lincoln University Entomology Research Collection|Entomology Research Collection]] at [[Lincoln University (New Zealand)|Lincoln University]], New Zealand, with curator [[John Marris]]]]
* [[Lincoln University Entomology Research Collection]], Lincoln, New Zealand

===Europe===<!-- PLEASE RESPECT ALPHABETICAL ORDER -->
* Bavarian State Collection of Zoology, [[Zoologische Staatssammlung München]]

===United States===
* [[Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia]]
* [[Department of Entomology, National Museum of Natural History]], [[Washington, D.C.]]

===Canada===
* [[Canadian Museum of Nature]], [[Ottawa]], [[Ontario]]
* Universtiy of Guelph Insect Collection, [[Guelph]], [[Ontario]]

== See also ==
{{Portal|Biology|Insects}}
{{col div|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Arachnology]]
* [[Carcinology]]
* [[Cultural entomology]]
* [[Ethnoentomology]]
* [[Insect thermoregulation]]
* [[Insects on stamps]]
* [[List of entomological journals]]
* [[Myriapodology]]
* [[Timeline of entomology – 1800–1850]]
* [[Timeline of entomology – 1850–1900]]
* [[Timeline of entomology since 1900]]
{{colend}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
{{quote box |quote = "I suppose you are an entomologist?"

"Not quite so ambitious as that, sir. I should like to put my eyes on the individual entitled to that name. No man can be truly called an entomologist, sir;  the subject is too vast for any single human intelligence to grasp."|source = —[[Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.]], ''The Poet at the Breakfast Table''.|width=25em|bgcolor=#c6dbf7}}

* Capinera, JL (editor). 2008. ''Encyclopedia of Entomology'', 2nd Edition. Springer. {{ISBN|1-4020-6242-7}}

* Chiang, H.C. and G. C. Jahn 1996.  Entomology in the Cambodia-IRRI-Australia Project. (in Chinese) ''Chinese Entomol. Soc. Newsltr.'' (Taiwan) 3: 9–11.
* Davidson, E. 2006. ''Big Fleas Have Little Fleas: How Discoveries of Invertebrate Diseases Are Advancing Modern Science'' University of Arizona Press, Tucson, 208 pages, {{ISBN|0-8165-2544-7}}.
* Gillot, Cedric.  '' Entomology''. Second Edition, Plenum Press, New York, NY / London 1995, {{ISBN|0-306-44967-6}}.
* {{cite book |author-link1=David Grimaldi (entomologist)|last1=Grimaldi |first1=David |author-link2=Michael S. Engel |last2=Engel |first2=Michael S. |title=Evolution of the Insects |year=2005 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=0-521-82149-5 }}

* Triplehorn, Charles A. and Norman F. Johnson (2005-05-19). Borror and DeLong's Introduction to the Study of Insects, 7th edition, Thomas Brooks/Cole. {{ISBN|0-03-096835-6}}. — a classic textbook in North America.
* Wale, Matthew. ''Making Entomologists: How Periodicals Shaped    Scientific Communities in Nineteenth-Century Britain'' (U of Pittsburgh Press, 2022) [http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=58756 online book review]

== External links ==
{{Wiktionary|entomology}}
{{Commons category|Entomology}}

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{{Orders of insects}}
{{Entomology}}
{{Zoology}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Entomology| ]]
[[Category:Subfields of arthropodology]]