Insect Ecomorphology

Oliver Betz obtained a Ph.D. in 1994 from the University of Bayreuth in Germany for his work on the morphology, function, and evolution of the prey-capture apparatus in Stenus rove beetles. He then became interested in the broader fields of functional and ecological morphology and became an assistant professor in ecology and zoology in 2002 at the University of Kiel, Germany. Since 2004, Oliver has been a full professor of Evolutionary Biology of Invertebrates at the Biology Department at the University of Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. His research focuses on the functional and ecological morphology of insects, with a focus on the integration of morphology and ecology to improve the understanding of the function of morphological structures in their ecological and evolutionary context.

• Part I: Conceptual Issues1. Introduction2. Conceptual and methodological issues in insect ecomorphologyPart II: Ecomorphology of the Insect Body3. Ecomorphology of the insect head with a focus on the mouthparts of adults4. Reflections of an insect's lifestyle and habitat: Morphological and ultrastructural adaptations involving the eyes of insects5. Ecomorphology of insect flight6. Ecomorphology of polypedal locomotion7. Ecomorphology and evolution of tarsal and pretarsal attachment organs in insects8. Ecomorphology of insect ovipositors9. Insect antennae and olfactory sensilla – aspects of odorant capture and water conservation10. Ecomorphology of insect mechanosensillaPart III: Methodological Approaches11. Methods for biomechanical characterization of insect cuticle12. Shaping up: morphometric approaches to understanding insect behavioral ecology and ecomorphologyPart IV: Case Studies13. Morphological adaptations of beetles to changing living conditions in the Permian and the Mesozoic14. Ecomorphology of microinsects15. Nectar-feeding ecology, ecomorphological adaptations, and variation of proboscis length in a long-proboscid fly (Diptera: Nemestrinidae: Prosoeca)16. Ecomorphology of antsPart V: Biomimetics17. Ways in which insect biomimetics can benefit from ecomorphological research and vice versa