humans

1

Incts&Humans:

Whereeverwego,theretheyare.

Theintertwinedlivesofinctsandpeople

•Inctsandagriculture

•Inctsandhumanhealth

•Inctsandhumanculture

InctsandAgriculture:Competitors

•Pests(incts,weeds,fungiand

vertebrates)cauthelossof

about1/3ofallagricultural

products.

•Directinctpests:feedonthe

harvestedportionofcrop.

•Indirectinctpestsfeedon

otherplantparts,reducingplant

vigorand/orspreadingdia.

•Storedproductinctpestsfeed

onharvestedfoodproducts.

2

InctsandFood:Pollinators

•Mostfruitandvegetablecrops

requireinctpollination.

•Mainpollination-honeybee

(Apismellifera)introduced

fromEurope.

•Annualvalueofhoneybee

pollinationinUnitedStates:

$1.8-18billion.

•Alternatemanagedpollinators:

bumblebees(greenhoucrops)

alfalfaleafcutterbeeinalfalfa.

InctAgriculturalProducts:Silk

•Silkisproducedbythe

caterpillarofthesilkmoth,

Bombyxmori,toformits

coccon.

•SilkproductionbeganinChina

in3000B.C.

InctsASFood

•Manynon-Westerncultures

regularlyconsumeincts.

–Anteggs,pupaeandadults

–Beeslarvaeandpupae

–Wasps-popularinAsia

–Lepidopteralarvae-thefamous

wichettygrub!

–Grasshoppers-eatenbyNative

Americansandinsoutheast

Asia

–Termites

InctsarehighinProtein!

Incts=64%protein

Fish=32%

Berries=3%

3

InctsandHumanHealth

•Blood-feedinginctsrveasvectorsformanyhumandias.

•Someofthediashaveprofoundlyaffectedhumanhistory:

Examples:

–Bubonicplague

–Yellowfever

•Somediascontinuetocauextensivehumansufferingand

economicunderdevelopmenttoday.

Example:

–MALARIA

InctDiaVectors:Plague

•Bubonicplague-TheBlackDeath

•Humanmortalityrateof30-75%

•CaudbythebacteriumYersinia

pestis,vectoredbytheOrientalrat

fleaandrervoiredinrats.

•LongprentinAsia,theCrusades

broughtthediatoEuropein

1352,25millionpeople

(1/3thetotalpopulation)were

dead.

•Recurrentplagueoutbreaks

continuetotheprent.

Ringaroundtherosy

Apocketfulofposies

Atishoo!Atishoo!

Weallfalldown.

4

InctDiaVectors:YellowFever

•Yellowfeverisaviraldia

vectoredbytheAedesaegypti

mosquito.

•Symptoms-acuteontofhigh

fever,aches,vomiting,jaundice.

Deathmayoccurwithin3days.

Limitedtreatmentoptions,buta

vaccineiffectiveprevention.

•StillcommoninAfricaandpartsof

LatinAmerica.

•Playedamajorroleinmilitary

campaignsandeffortstobuildthe

PanamaCanalin1905.

InctDiaVectors:Malaria

•Caudbydifferentspeciesof

Plasmodiummicroorganismsand

vectoredbymosquitoesinthegenus

Anopheles.

•Caushigh,recurringfeverand

sometimesdeath.

•Malariakillsanestimated1to3million

deathsperyear(mostlyAfricanchildren

under5)andcaus300-500million

ereda

majorimpedimenttoeconomic

developmentinAfrica.

•Controlinvolvesmosquitoabatementand

drugtreatment.

GlobalRiskofMalariain2003(WHO)

5

InctsforMedicalTreatment

•Inctsareimportantmodels

formedicalrearch,

particularlyingeneticsand

e:

Drosophilamelanogaster

•Blowflymaggots-udto

removedecayingflesh.

InctsandCulture

•InctsinReligion&Myth

–AncientEgypt:Dungbeetle

(Scarab)rolledthesunacross

theskyandcarriedthesoulsof

thedead.

–Maori-soulsofthedead

returnasbutterflies

–NativeAmericangroups-

butterfliessymbolizerebirth

Hopi-ButterflyKachina

InctsandtheArts

•Inctshavervedas

inspirationforallhumanart

forms:

•Visualarts

–AndrewWyeth’sWinterBees

•Music:

–Rimsky-Korsakov’sFlightof

theBumblebee

•Literature:

–Kafka’sMetamorphosis

–DonMarquis’sArchyand

Mehitabel

•TheatreandMovies

6

InctsintheMovies

•InctHorrorMovies:

Them!

TheFly

Mothra

TheSwarm

Tarantula

TheBlackScorpion

TheIncredibleShrinkingMan

TheExorcistII:TheHeretic

TheHellstromChronicle

Arachnophobia

•MovieswithInctHeroes:

SpidermanI&II

Antz

Bug’sLife

Angels&Incts

Joe’sApartment

•Movieswithinctsin

supportingroles:

MysteriousIsland

SilenceoftheLambs

DaysofHeaven

MeninBlack

“We’vebeenherefor100millionyearsandwe’llbeherelongafteryou!”