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Ameles Spallanzania
''Ameles spallanzania'', common name European dwarf mantis, is a species of praying mantis. Etymology The species name ''spallanzania'' honors the Italian naturalist Lazzaro Spallanzani. Description ''Ameles spallanzania'' can reach a length of . Their colour may be brown, green, ocher or grey. The eyes are slightly pointed, antennae are threadlike, the pronotum is short and squared and the broad abdomen of the females is commonly curled upwards. This very small mantid (hence the common name) is characterized by an evident sexual dimorphism. The males are winged and have a quite slender body, while females show stubby bodies and are unable to fly, as they possess only small wing vestiges (brachypterous).Roberto Battiston & Carlo GallianiOn the life-cycle of ''Ameles spallanzania'' (Rossi, 1792) (Insecta, Mantodea). Atti Soc. it. Sci. nat. Museo civ. Stor. nat. Milano, 152, I, S. 25-35. January 2011 Biology This thermophile species shows adaptable life-cycle strategies in diffe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pietro Rossi (scientist)
Pietro Rossi (23 January 1738 in Florence – 21 December 1804 in Pisa) was an Italian scientist and entomologist. Career Rossi's academic career was conducted at the University of Pisa, where he attained a doctorate in philosophy and medicine in 1759. He was then made a professor of logic in 1763, a position he held until 1801, when he finally received the chair for natural history with the special field "insectology", making him the world's first professor of entomology. His publications, particularly ''Fauna etrusca'' (1790) and ''Mantissa insectorum'' (1792), are considered pioneer achievements of entomology and still possess scientific validity in the fields of taxonomy and biological nomenclature. Parts of his collection were once in the possession of Johann Christian Ludwig Hellwig in Braunschweig; these are now in the Natural History Museum of Berlin. In 1793, he was elected a foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. After his death, the ''Museo entomo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Common Name
In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrasted with the scientific name for the same organism, which is Latinized. A common name is sometimes frequently used, but that is not always the case. In chemistry, IUPAC defines a common name as one that, although it unambiguously defines a chemical, does not follow the current systematic naming convention, such as acetone, systematically 2-propanone, while a vernacular name describes one used in a lab, trade or industry that does not unambiguously describe a single chemical, such as copper sulfate, which may refer to either copper(I) sulfate or copper(II) sulfate. Sometimes common names are created by authorities on one particular subject, in an attempt to make it possible for members of the general public (including such interested par ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. Other ways of defining species include their karyotype, DNA sequence, morphology, behaviour or ecological niche. In addition, paleontologists use the concept of the chronospecies since fossil reproduction cannot be examined. The most recent rigorous estimate for the total number of species of eukaryotes is between 8 and 8.7 million. However, only about 14% of these had been described by 2011. All species (except viruses) are given a two-part name, a "binomial". The first part of a binomial is the genus to which the species belongs. The second part is called the specific name or the specific epithet (in botanical nomenclature, also sometimes i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Praying Mantis
Mantises are an order (Mantodea) of insects that contains over 2,400 species in about 460 genera in 33 families. The largest family is the Mantidae ("mantids"). Mantises are distributed worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats. They have triangular heads with bulging eyes supported on flexible necks. Their elongated bodies may or may not have wings, but all Mantodea have forelegs that are greatly enlarged and adapted for catching and gripping prey; their upright posture, while remaining stationary with forearms folded, has led to the common name praying mantis. The closest relatives of mantises are termites and cockroaches (Blattodea), which are all within the superorder Dictyoptera. Mantises are sometimes confused with stick insects ( Phasmatodea), other elongated insects such as grasshoppers (Orthoptera), or other more distantly related insects with raptorial forelegs such as mantisflies (Mantispidae). Mantises are mostly ambush predators, but a few ground-dwelling s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lazzaro Spallanzani
Lazzaro Spallanzani (; 12 January 1729 – 11 February 1799) was an Italian Catholic priest (for which he was nicknamed Abbé Spallanzani), biologist and physiologist who made important contributions to the experimental study of bodily functions, animal reproduction, and animal echolocation. His research on biogenesis paved the way for the downfall of the theory of spontaneous generation, a prevailing idea at the time that organisms develop from inanimate matters, though the final death blow to the idea was dealt by French scientist Louis Pasteur a century later. His most important works were summed up in his book ''Experiencias Para Servir a La Historia de La Generación De Animales y Plantas'' (''Experiences to Serve to the History of the Generation of Animals and Plants''), published in 1786. Among his contributions were experimental demonstrations of fertilisation between ova and spermatozoa, and ''in vitro'' fertilisation''.'' Biography Spallanzani was born in Scandian ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pronotum
The prothorax is the foremost of the three segments in the thorax of an insect, and bears the first pair of legs. Its principal sclerites (exoskeletal plates) are the pronotum (dorsal), the prosternum (ventral), and the propleuron (lateral) on each side. The prothorax never bears wings in extant insects (except in some cases of atavism), though some fossil groups possessed wing-like projections. All adult insects possess legs on the prothorax, though in a few groups (e.g., the butterfly family Nymphalidae) the forelegs are greatly reduced. In many groups of insects, the pronotum is reduced in size, but in a few it is hypertrophied, such as in all beetles (Coleoptera). In most treehoppers (family Membracidae, order Hemiptera), the pronotum is expanded into often fantastic shapes that enhance their camouflage or mimicry. Similarly, in the Tetrigidae, the pronotum is extended backward to cover the flight wings, supplanting the function of the tegmina. See also *Glossary of entomolo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sexual Dimorphism
Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most animals and some plants. Differences may include secondary sex characteristics, size, weight, colour, markings, or behavioural or cognitive traits. These differences may be subtle or exaggerated and may be subjected to sexual selection and natural selection. The opposite of dimorphism is ''monomorphism'', which is when both biological sexes are phenotypically indistinguishable from each other. Overview Ornamentation and coloration Common and easily identified types of dimorphism consist of ornamentation and coloration, though not always apparent. A difference in coloration of sexes within a given species is called sexual dichromatism, which is commonly seen in many species of birds and reptiles. Sexual selection leads to the exaggerated dim ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brachypterous
Brachyptery is an anatomical condition in which an animal has very reduced wings. Such animals or their wings may be described as "brachypterous". Another descriptor for very small wings is microptery. Brachypterous wings generally are not functional as organs of flight and often seem to be totally functionless and vestigial. In some species, however, flightless wings may have other functions, such as aposematic display in some Orthoptera and Phasmatodea. Brachyptery occurs commonly among insects. An insect species might evolve towards brachyptery by reducing its flight muscles and their associated energy demands, or by avoiding the hazards of flight in windy conditions on oceanic islands, in which flying insects are prone to drowning. Brachyptery also is common in ectoparasitic insects that have no use for wings, and inquiline insects with socially parasitic life strategies that do not require functional wings. In some species of insects, brachyptery occurs in some members (say ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
European Dwarf Mantis (Ameles Spallanzania) Female (8348866507)
''Ameles spallanzania'', common name European dwarf mantis, is a species of praying mantis. Etymology The species name ''spallanzania'' honors the Italian naturalist Lazzaro Spallanzani. Description ''Ameles spallanzania'' can reach a length of . Their colour may be brown, green, ocher or grey. The eyes are slightly pointed, antennae are threadlike, the pronotum is short and squared and the broad abdomen of the females is commonly curled upwards. This very small mantid (hence the common name) is characterized by an evident sexual dimorphism. The males are winged and have a quite slender body, while females show stubby bodies and are unable to fly, as they possess only small wing vestiges ( brachypterous).Roberto Battiston & Carlo GallianiOn the life-cycle of ''Ameles spallanzania'' (Rossi, 1792) (Insecta, Mantodea). Atti Soc. it. Sci. nat. Museo civ. Stor. nat. Milano, 152, I, S. 25-35. January 2011 Biology This thermophile species shows adaptable life-cycle strategies in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ootheca
An ootheca (pl. ''oothecae'' ) is a type of egg mass made by any member of a variety of species including mollusks (such as ''Turbinella laevigata''), mantises, and cockroaches. The word is a Latinized combination of ''oo-'', meaning "egg", from the Greek word ''ōon'' (cf. Latin ''ovum''), and ''theca'', meaning a "cover" or "container", from the Greek ''theke''. Ootheke is Greek for ovary. Oothecae are made up of structural proteins and tanning agents that cause the protein to harden around the eggs, providing protection and stability. The production of ootheca convergently evolved across numerous insect species due to a selection for protection from parasites and other forms of predation, as the complex structure of the shell casing provides an evolutionary reproductive advantage (although the fitness and lifespan also depend on other factors such as the temperature of the incubating ootheca). Oothecae are most notably found in the orders Blattodea (Cockroaches) and Mantode ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mantis Religiosa
The European mantis (''Mantis religiosa'') is a large hemimetabolic insect in the family of the Mantidae ('mantids'), which is the largest family of the order Mantodea (mantises). Their common name praying mantis is derived from the distinctive posture of the first pair of legs that can be observed in animals in repose. It resembles a praying attitude. Both males and females have elongated bodies with two pairs of wings. The most striking features that all Mantodea share are a very mobile, triangular head with large compound eyes and their first pair of legs (the 'raptorial legs'), which is highly modified for the efficient capture and restraint of fast-moving or flying prey. In Germany, ''M. religiosa'' is listed as ''Gefährdet'' ndangeredon the German Red List on the basis of an assessment from 1998. It is not supposed to be caught or held as a pet. At a global level, it is assessed by the IUCN as least concern. Anatomy Though females of ''M. religiosa'' are usually larg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ameles Spallanziana
''Ameles'' is a wide-ranging genus of praying mantises represented in Africa, Asia, and Europe. Tree of Life Web Project. 2005 Species * '''' Werner, 1913 * '' Ameles arabica'' Uvarov, 1939 * '''' Bolivar, 1873 * '''' Charpentier, 1825 * ''[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
