Seasonal Pests & Mini Pigs
Biology of insects: metamorphosis and life cycle
All insects have a so-called indirect development: they undergo a process called metamorphosis (a word of Greek origin meaning "form change"): they change their form several times along their development, which includes several stages: egg, larva, nymph or pupa, and adult (also called imago).
Some insects undergo a complete metamorphosis (they are called holometabolic), e.g. flies, beetles, butterflies, etc. Adult females lay eggs from which small larvae hatch that look like small worms and crawl around to find food. Larvae grow through a series of moults until they become mature (so-called stage-III larvae). Such mature larvae stop crawling and become pupae (the chrysalid of butterflies) that don't move. Inside the pupa the adult is formed that hatches out after several days. Adults don't moult and they don't grow anymore, among other reasons because the rigid exokeleton makes it impossible.
Other insects undergo an incomplete metamorphosis (they are called hemimetabolic), e.g. cockroaches, lice, crickets, etc. Larvae don't look like small worms, but like small adults. These larvae moult several times and increase their size until they become nymphs. They dont go through the pupal stage. The nymphs moult a last time to become adults without going through the pupal stage. Nymphs look like smaller adults too, but they cannot reproduce.
Metamorphosis is regulated through two major hormones, ecdysone and juvenile hormone.
Depending on the species, the whole life cycle may take less than a week to more than a year to be completed. Within each species, the duration of the life cycle strongly depends on environmental factors such as temperature and humidity as well as on the availability of food. Duration of the life cycle is a very important factor to be considered when establishing strategies for controlling a given parasite.
In some insect species the whole life cycle is completed on the host (e.g. lice). In many other species only adults or larvae are parasitic while the other stages live free in the environment (e.g. in the vegetation, in manure, in the soil, etc.) and do not cause any harm to their hosts. Biting flies, fleas, mosquitoes cause damage to their hosts only as adults. Screwworms, flystrike, warble flies cause damage to their hosts only as larvae.
It is important to understand the life cycle of the parasites, because control measures consisting e.g. in applying insecticides on the host will affect mor, less or not at all the stages in the environment that will continue attacking the host or producing infective stages.
Types of insects that parasitize livestock and pets
Insects the are parasitic of livestock, dogs and pets belong mainly to the following groups of insects:
Harm to livestock, horses, dogs and cats caused by parasitic insects
Many parasitic adult insects are blood sucking, i.e. they feed on the blood of their hosts which is their main food and absolutely necessary for them to survive and/or to produce eggs. This is the case for stable flies, horn flies, mosquitoes, fleas, etc. Other parasitic adult insects do not suck blood (e.g. face flies, lice) but feed on fluids in humid parts of the body (eyes, nose, mouth, udders, genital organs) or feed on skin or feather debris.
Larvae of some parasitic insects cause the so-called myiases: the larvae feed on the host's tissues, either from outside (e.g. screwworm and blowfly larvae) or feed themselves into the host's body and migrate more or less inside while feeding (e.g. warble flies and human bot flies).
Harm to livestock or pets may come from painful biting and itching due to inflammation at the biting site or to allergic reactions (especially in pets) that cause scratching. Intense scratching may produce loss of hair, wool or feathers as well as skin wounds that can be infected with bacteria or other microorganisms, or attract other parasites (typically screwworm and other flies). Blood loss due to heavy infestations may also cause anemia and negatively affect livestock performance. Uncontrolled screw worms and blow fly larvae may literally devour their prays from the outside within days. Other myiasis caused by warble and bot flies may occasionally damage essential organs or just debilitate the hosts' organism. Such harm often leads to substantial economic losses in livestock production. In the 1980's, the USDA estimated the anual losses in the US to the livestock industry due to biting flies to be about 500 million US$, those from lice about 40 milion US$ and those caused by other various insects about 300 mio USD. Economic loss due to ticks in Brazil was recently estimated to be more than 2 billion US$.
A very important harm of parasitic insects is disease transmission, since many parasitic insects are vectors of (i.e. they carry and transmit) microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses that are pathogenic for livestock or pets.
The most harmful insects for livestock and pets are listed below:
All insects have a so-called indirect development: they undergo a process called metamorphosis (a word of Greek origin meaning "form change"): they change their form several times along their development, which includes several stages: egg, larva, nymph or pupa, and adult (also called imago).
Some insects undergo a complete metamorphosis (they are called holometabolic), e.g. flies, beetles, butterflies, etc. Adult females lay eggs from which small larvae hatch that look like small worms and crawl around to find food. Larvae grow through a series of moults until they become mature (so-called stage-III larvae). Such mature larvae stop crawling and become pupae (the chrysalid of butterflies) that don't move. Inside the pupa the adult is formed that hatches out after several days. Adults don't moult and they don't grow anymore, among other reasons because the rigid exokeleton makes it impossible.
Other insects undergo an incomplete metamorphosis (they are called hemimetabolic), e.g. cockroaches, lice, crickets, etc. Larvae don't look like small worms, but like small adults. These larvae moult several times and increase their size until they become nymphs. They dont go through the pupal stage. The nymphs moult a last time to become adults without going through the pupal stage. Nymphs look like smaller adults too, but they cannot reproduce.
Metamorphosis is regulated through two major hormones, ecdysone and juvenile hormone.
Depending on the species, the whole life cycle may take less than a week to more than a year to be completed. Within each species, the duration of the life cycle strongly depends on environmental factors such as temperature and humidity as well as on the availability of food. Duration of the life cycle is a very important factor to be considered when establishing strategies for controlling a given parasite.
In some insect species the whole life cycle is completed on the host (e.g. lice). In many other species only adults or larvae are parasitic while the other stages live free in the environment (e.g. in the vegetation, in manure, in the soil, etc.) and do not cause any harm to their hosts. Biting flies, fleas, mosquitoes cause damage to their hosts only as adults. Screwworms, flystrike, warble flies cause damage to their hosts only as larvae.
It is important to understand the life cycle of the parasites, because control measures consisting e.g. in applying insecticides on the host will affect mor, less or not at all the stages in the environment that will continue attacking the host or producing infective stages.
Types of insects that parasitize livestock and pets
Insects the are parasitic of livestock, dogs and pets belong mainly to the following groups of insects:
- Diptera (one pair of wings): flies, mosquitoes, gnats, midges, warble flies, screwworm flies, blowflies, sheep keds, etc.
- Hemiptera (two pairs of wings): bed bugs
- Phthiraptera (no wings): most lice
- Siphonaptera (no wings): fleas
Harm to livestock, horses, dogs and cats caused by parasitic insects
Many parasitic adult insects are blood sucking, i.e. they feed on the blood of their hosts which is their main food and absolutely necessary for them to survive and/or to produce eggs. This is the case for stable flies, horn flies, mosquitoes, fleas, etc. Other parasitic adult insects do not suck blood (e.g. face flies, lice) but feed on fluids in humid parts of the body (eyes, nose, mouth, udders, genital organs) or feed on skin or feather debris.
Larvae of some parasitic insects cause the so-called myiases: the larvae feed on the host's tissues, either from outside (e.g. screwworm and blowfly larvae) or feed themselves into the host's body and migrate more or less inside while feeding (e.g. warble flies and human bot flies).
Harm to livestock or pets may come from painful biting and itching due to inflammation at the biting site or to allergic reactions (especially in pets) that cause scratching. Intense scratching may produce loss of hair, wool or feathers as well as skin wounds that can be infected with bacteria or other microorganisms, or attract other parasites (typically screwworm and other flies). Blood loss due to heavy infestations may also cause anemia and negatively affect livestock performance. Uncontrolled screw worms and blow fly larvae may literally devour their prays from the outside within days. Other myiasis caused by warble and bot flies may occasionally damage essential organs or just debilitate the hosts' organism. Such harm often leads to substantial economic losses in livestock production. In the 1980's, the USDA estimated the anual losses in the US to the livestock industry due to biting flies to be about 500 million US$, those from lice about 40 milion US$ and those caused by other various insects about 300 mio USD. Economic loss due to ticks in Brazil was recently estimated to be more than 2 billion US$.
A very important harm of parasitic insects is disease transmission, since many parasitic insects are vectors of (i.e. they carry and transmit) microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses that are pathogenic for livestock or pets.
The most harmful insects for livestock and pets are listed below:
- For cattle: particularly damaging insects with substantial economic impact are horn flies (worldwide, mainly range cattle), stable flies (worldwide, mainly for feedlots and dairy), tsetse flies (in Africa), screwworms (Central and South America, Asia), torsalo (Dermatobia hominis in Latin America), warble flies (Northern Hemisphere) and lice (worldwide). Houseflies may be a significant problem in the dairy industry worldwide.
- For sheep: the most damaging insects with substantial economic impact are blowflies (mainly UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa) and lice (worldwide).
- For pigs: lice, stable flies and houseflies occur worldwide although damage is usually not as substantial as on cattle and sheep.
- For poultry: lice and houseflies can have a significant impact in productivity.
- For dogs and cats: the most harmful insects are fleas and mosquitoes that transmit various diseases.
- For horses: the most frequent and harmful insects are bot flies as well as various flies and mosquitoes that transmit important diseases.