Practice Test Geeks(ACE) Associate Certified Entomologist Practice Test
← All ACE Flashcard Decks

Insect Biology & Identification Flashcards

7 cards from real ACE practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

Read the first 7 Insect Biology & Identification flashcards as text

  1. Which of the following best describes arrhenotoky, a reproductive strategy seen in Hymenoptera?

    Answer: Unfertilized eggs develop into males (haploid); fertilized eggs develop into females (diploid)

    Arrhenotoky is a form of parthenogenesis in which unfertilized, haploid eggs develop into males and fertilized, diploid eggs develop into females, as in bees, wasps, and ants.

  2. The term 'sclerotization' in insect biology refers to:

    Answer: The hardening of the cuticle through protein cross-linking (tanning)

    Sclerotization is the process by which insect cuticle is hardened and darkened through the oxidative cross-linking of proteins by quinones, particularly after molting.

  3. Entomologists use the term 'instar' to describe:

    Answer: The insect between two successive molts

    An instar is the developmental stage of an insect between two consecutive molts; a third-instar larva, for example, has molted twice.

  4. Which type of insect antenna is described as 'geniculate'?

    Answer: Elbowed antennae with a distinct bend, as in ants and weevils

    Geniculate antennae have a sharp bend or elbow at the junction of the elongated first segment (scape) and the remaining segments, characteristic of ants and weevils.

  5. The Johnston's organ in insects is located in the:

    Answer: Pedicel of the antenna

    Johnston's organ is a chordotonal sensory structure located in the pedicel (second antennal segment) that detects antennal movement, sound, and gravity.

  6. A pest manager observes an insect with gradual metamorphosis, incomplete wing development, and cerci at the tip of the abdomen. Which order is most likely?

    Answer: Orthoptera

    Orthoptera (grasshoppers, crickets, katydids) undergo hemimetabolous development, have gradual wing development through nymphal instars, and typically bear cerci.

  7. The rostrum in hemipteran insects is best described as:

    Answer: A segmented beak housing piercing-sucking mouthparts

    The rostrum is the beak-like structure of Hemiptera composed of the fused labium forming a sheath around the stylet-form mandibles and maxillae used to pierce and suck.