What is Entomology?

en·to·mol·o·gy (noun)

The branch of zoology that deals with the study of insects.

Entomologists are people who study insects. All over the world, entomologists observe, collect, rear and experiment with insects. Research undertaken by entomologists covers all biological disciplines such as evolution, ecology, behavior, anatomy and physiology, to biochemistry and genetics. Many biologists work with insects because they are easy to culture, many individuals are available, and there is a diversity of species to study.

Why study entomology at UC Davis?

We study insects for many reasons. Their ecologies are incredibly variable. Insects may dominate food chains and food webs in volume and numbers. Feeding specializations of different insect groups include detritus, rotting materials, living and dead wood, and fungus, aquatic filter feeding and grazing, herbivory, predation and parasitism. Insect may live in water, on land or in soil throughout, or during part of their lives. Their lifestyles may be either solitary, gregarious, subsocial, or highly social. They may be conspicuous, mimics of other objects, or concealed, and may be active by day or night. Insect life cycles allow survival under a wide range of conditions, such as extremes of heat and cold, wet and dry, and unpredictable climates.

Insects are essential in ecosystems in many ways: as nutrient recyclers, in plant propagation, including pollination, seed dispersal, and in maintaining plant community structure; as food for insectivorous birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles and fish; an in maintaining animal and plant community structure, through disease transmission, and herbivory, predation and parasitism, and in forensics.

Undergraduate Program

Undergraduate courses offered in the Entomology Department at UC Davis cover all aspects of insect biology, from the role of Insects in Art and the environment, their Biodiversity, Evolution, Ecology in many different ecosystems, their Social Systems, their use in Forensics and how we can control destructive insects and utilize “beneficial” insect in crop and livestock production.

Graduate Program

Graduate Studies at UC Davis are very strong, including systematics for which the Bohart Museum is a world-class resource, medical entomology, ecology, and pest management, including research into new and enhanced methods of control.