Abstract
The integument of insects (and other arthropods) comprises the basement membrane, epidermis, and cuticle. It is often thought of as the “skin” of an insect but, functionally speaking, it is far more than just that (Locke, 1974). Not only does it provide physical protection for internal organs but, because of its rigidity, it serves as a skeleton to which muscles can be attached. It also reduces water loss to a very low level in most Insecta, a feature which has been of great significance in the evolution of this predominantly terrestrial class. In addition to these primary functions, the cuticular component of the integument performs a number of secondary duties. It acts as a metabolic reserve, to be used cyclically to construct the next stage, or during periods of great metabolic activity or starvation. It prevents entry of foreign material, both living and nonliving, into a insect. The color of insects is also a function of the integument, especially the cuticular component.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Literature
Reviews on aspects of the integument are given by Ebeling (1974) [permeability of cuticle], Hackman (1974) [chemistry of cuticle], Locke (1974)
Beament, J. W. L., 1961, The water relations of insect cuticle, Biol. Rev. 36: 281 - 320.
Ebeling, W., 1974, Permeability of insect cuticle, in: The Physiology of Insecta, 2nd ed., Vol. VI ( M. Rockstein, ed.), Academic Press, New York.
Fuzeau-Bresch, S., 1972, Pigments and color changes, Annu. Rev. Entomol. 17:403-424.
Hackman, R. H., 1974, Chemistry of the insect cuticle, in: The Physiology of Insecta, 2nd ed., Vol. VI ( M. Rockstein, ed.), Academic Press, New York.
Hepburn, H. R. (ed.), 1976, The InsectIntegument, American Elsevier, New York.
Locke, M., 1974, The structure and formation of the integument in insects, in: The Physiology of Insecta, 2nd ed., Vol. VI ( M. Rockstein, ed.), Academic Press, New York.
Neville, A. C., 1975, Biology of the ArthropodCuticle, Springer-Verlag, New York.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1980 Plenum Press, New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Gillott, C. (1980). The Integument. In: Entomology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-6915-2_11
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-6915-2_11
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4615-6917-6
Online ISBN: 978-1-4615-6915-2
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive