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Mouth Parts of
Insects
B.Sc. Part I, Paper I, Group A, Animal Diversity
By- Dr. Vandana Kumari, Department of zoology, R.C.S. College, Manjhaul
Introduction
Mouth parts of insects are structures surrounding the mouth which are involved in
the mechanism of feeding, processing and manipulation of the food making them
suitable for ingestion.
In different groups of insects mouth part vary to some extent and depends mainly
upon their feeding habit. Although mouth parts are highly diverse in shape and size
but the basic plan is same.
It includes a single labrum, two mandibles, two maxillae, one hypopharynx and a
labium with palp.
1. Biting and Chewing
 This type of mouth parts are supposed to be the most primitive type as the other
types are believed to be evolved from biting and chewing type of mouth parts.
 These consist of the labrum forming upper lip, mandibles, first maxillae, second
maxillae forming lower lip, hypo pharynx and the epipharynx.
 The labrum is median, somewhat rectangular flap-like. The mandibles are paired
and bear toothed edges at their inner surfaces; they work transversely by two
sets of muscles to masticate the food. The first maxillae are paired and lie one on
either side of the head capsule behind the mandibles. Each possesses a five-
jointed maxillary palp which is a tactile organ.
 The first maxillae help in holding the food.
The second maxillae are paired but fused to
form the lower lip. Its function is to push the
masticated food into the mouth. The hypo
pharynx is single median tongue-like process
at whose base the common salivary duct
opens. The epipharynx is a single small
membranous piece lying under the labrum
and bears taste buds. This type of mouth
parts are found in orthopteran insects like
cockroaches, grasshoppers, crickets, etc.
These are also found in silver fish, termites,
earwigs, beetles, some hymenopterans and
in caterpillars of Lepidoptera.
2. Chewing and Lapping
 This type of mouth parts are modified for collecting the nectar and pollen from
flowers and also for moulding the wax, as is found in honeybees, wasps, etc. They
consist of the labrum, epipharynx, mandibles, first pair of maxillae and second pair of
maxillae.
 The labrum lies below the clypeus, below the labrum is a fleshy epipharynx which is
an organ of taste.
 Mandibles are short, smooth and spatulated, situated one on either side of the
labrum; used in moulding wax and making the honeycomb. The labium (second pair
of maxillae) has reduced paraglossae, the glossae are united and elongated to form
the so called retractile tongue, at its tip is a small labellum or honey spoon. The labial
palps are elongated.
 The glossa is used for gathering honey and it is an organ of touch and taste. The first
pair of maxillae are placed at the sides of labium, they bear small maxillary palps,
lacinia is very much reduced but galea are elongated and blade-like.
 The galea and labial palps form a tube
enclosing the glossae which moves up
and down to collect nectar from flower
nectaries. The nectar is sucked up
through the tube, so formed, by the
pumping action of the pharynx. The
labrum and mandibles help in chewing
the food.
3. Piercing and Sucking:
 This type of mouth parts are adapted for piercing the tissues of animals and
plants to suck blood and plant juice, and found in dipteran insects like
mosquitoes and hemipteran insects like bugs, aphids, etc.
 They usually consist of labium, labrum and epipharynx, mandibles, maxillae (1st
pair) and hypo pharynx.
(i) Piercing and sucking mouth parts of
mosquitoes:
 The labium is modified to form a long, straight, fleshy tube, called proboscis. It has
a deep labial groove on its upper side. The labial palps are modified to form two
conical lobes at the tip of the proboscis, called labella which bear tactile bristles.
The labrum is long needle-like. The epipharynx is fused with the labrum. The
labrum-epipharynx, These structures appear C- shaped in transverse section
having a groove, called food channel. Mandibles, maxillae and hypo pharynx
are modified to form needle-like stylets which are placed in the labial groove. In
male mosquitoes, the mandibles are absent. The mandibles are finer than the
maxillae, but both have saw-like edges on their tips. The hypo pharynx possesses
salivary duct which opens at its tip. thus, covers the labial groove dorsally from
inside.
(ii) Piercing and sucking mouth parts
of bugs:
 In bedbug, the labium constitutes a three- jointed
proboscis. The mandibles and maxillae are modified to
form stylets; the mandibular stylets possess blade-like tips,
while maxillary stylets possess saw-like tips. The labrum is
flap like and covers the labial groove at the base only.
 Of the four stylets, mandibles are placed externally in the
labial groove, while both the maxillae are placed
internally in the labial groove. The maxillae are grooved
and placed in such a way that they form an upper food
channel and lower salivary canal. The epipharynx and
hypo pharynx are absent.
4. Sponging
 This type of mouth parts are adapted for

sucking up liquid or semiliquid food and found
in houseflies and some other flies. They consist
of labrum- epipharynx, maxillae, labium and
hypo pharynx; mandibles are entirely absent.
 In fact, in this type of mouth parts, the labium,
i.e., lower lip is well developed and modified
to form a long, fleshy and retractile proboscis.
The proboscis is divisible into three
distinct parts:
I. Rostrum or basiproboscis; it is broad, elongated and cone-shaped basal part of
proboscis articulated proximally with the head and bears a pair of un-jointed maxillary
palps representing the maxillae,
II. Haustellum or mediproboscis; it is the middle part of proboscis bearing a mid-dorsal oral
groove and a ventral weakly chitinised plate-like theca or mentum.A double- edged
blade-like hypo pharynx is located deep inside the oral groove; it bears salivary duct
and closes the groove of labrum-epipharynx from below. The labrum-epipharynx is a
long, somewhat flattened and grooved structure covering the oral groove. The food
canal or channel is, thus, formed by labium-epipharynx and the hypo pharynx.
III. Labella or distiproboscis; it is the distal part of proboscis and consists of two broad,
flattened and oval spongy pads having a series of channels called pseudo tracheae.
These open externally by a double row of tiny holes through which liquid food is taken
in. The pseudo tracheae converge into the mouth lying between the two lobes of
labella which lead into the food canal.
5. Siphoning:
 This type of mouth parts are adapted wonderfully for sucking
flower nectar and fruit juice, found in butterflies and moths
belonging to the order Lepidoptera of class Insecta. They consist
of small labrum, coiled proboscis, reduced mandibles and
labium. The hypo pharynx and epipharynx are not found.
 The labrum is a triangular sclerite attached with the front clypeus
of the head. The proboscis is formed by well-developed, greatly
elongated and modified galeae of maxillae. It is grooved
internally to form the food channel or canal through which food
is drawn up to mouth. At rest, when proboscis is not in use, it is
tightly coiled beneath the head but it becomes extended in
response to food stimulus.
 The extension of proboscis is achieved by .exerting a fluid
pressure by the blood. Mandibles are either absent or greatly
reduced, situated on the lateral sides of the labrum. The labium
is triangular plate-like bearing labial palps.

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