Following are the most important orders of insects that affect plants or are household pests. The links on each order will take you to detailed information on how to recognize the order, what its distinguishing characteristis are and the type of damage (or good!) a selection of the insects in the order cause. Pay special attention to the type of mouth parts each order has, e.g. chewing, piercing and sucking, etc. See Insect Orders Comparison Chart.
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Blattodea
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Cockroaches and termites
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Coleoptera
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Beetles and weevils
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Dermaptera
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(no image)
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Earwigs
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Diptera
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Flies, mosquitoes, midges
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Ephemeroptera
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(no image)
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Mayflies
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Hemiptera
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Auchenorrhyncha - Cicadas, leafhppers, spittlebugs, planthoppers
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Heteroptera - True bugs
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Sternorrhyncha - Adelgids, phylloxera
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Sternorrhyncha - Aphilds
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Sternorrhyncha - Psyllids
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Sternorrhyncha - Scales, mealybugs
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Sternorrhyncha - Whiteflies
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Hymenoptera
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Aculeata - Ants
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Aculeata - Bees
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Aculeata - Wasps
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Apocrita - Parasitoid wasps, gall wasps
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Symphyta - Sawflies
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Lepidoptera
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Butterflies, moths
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Mantodea
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Mantids or mantises
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Mecoptera
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(no image)
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Scorpionflies
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Microcoryphia
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Bristletails
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Neuroptera
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Lacewings, antlions
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Odonata
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Dragonflies, damselflies
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Orthoptera
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Crickets, katydids, grasshoppers
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Phasmatodea
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Walkingsticks
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Thysanoptera
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Thrips
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Trichoptera
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Caddisflies
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