Difference Between Hymenoptera and Diptera

The key difference between Hymenoptera and Diptera is that Hymenoptera insects have two pair of wings while Diptera insects have one pair of wings.

Phylum Arthropoda is one of the major phyla in Kingdom Animalia. This phylum consists of animals that possess hard exoskeletons and joined appendages. It is the largest phylum comprising a wide variety of animals. More than 84% of known animal species on the planet, including insects, arachnids, myriapods, and crustaceans, belong to this phylum. Insects are the largest group in this phylum. Insects have segmented bodies supported by a hard exoskeleton. Hymenoptera and dipteral are two orders of insects. They are winged insects.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Hymenoptera
3. What is Diptera
4. Similarities Between Hymenoptera and Diptera
5. Side by Side Comparison – Hymenoptera vs Diptera in Tabular Form
6. Summary

What is Hymenoptera?

Hymenoptera is an order of insects that consists of animals having two pairs of joined thin clear membranous wings. Ants, wasps and bees are members of the order Hymenoptera. More than 150,000 species are in this group. The majority are parasites while others are nonparasitic, carnivorous, phytophagous, or omnivorous insects. They have well-developed mandibles. There are small to large size insects in this group. Hymenoptera insects have a thin waist, connecting thorax and lower abdomen. They have long antennae with more than ten segments.

There are two groups of Hymenoptera. They are Symphyta, which have no waist, and Apocrita, which have a narrow waist. Symphyta includes sawflies, horntails, and parasitic wood wasps while Apocrita includes wasps, bees, and ants.

Hymenoptera insects are the most beneficial insects to humans. Many members are important to humans as pollinators of wild and cultivated flowering plants, as parasites of destructive insects, and as makers of honey.

What is Diptera?

Diptera is an order of insects that includes true flies. Therefore, it consists of insects containing a single pair of wings or two wings in total. Diptera is one of the largest groups of insects comprising more than 125,000 described species. Flies, mosquitoes, gnats and punkies are major types of insects in this group. These insects are relatively small with soft bodies.

Diptera can be classified into three groups as Nematocera, Brachyura and Cyclorrhapha. Nematocera includes flies with multisegmented antennae. Brachycera includes flies with stylate antennae. Cyclorrhapha includes flies with aristate antennae.

Many members of this group are of great economic importance. Bloodsuckers such as mosquitoes are vectors of many human diseases. Some are pests of economically important crops. Flies are important pollinators of flowering plants and biological control agents of insects and pests. Moreover, some are important for decomposition and degeneration of plant and animal matter.

What are the Similarities Between Hymenoptera and Diptera?

• Hymenoptera and Diptera are two orders of winged insects.
• They have antennae.
• Life cycles of both types of insects have four distinct stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult.
• Both groups include pollinators and biological control agents.

What is the Difference Between Hymenoptera and Diptera?

Hymenoptera is a group that includes insects with joined membranous two pairs of wings while Diptera is a group of insects that have a single pair of wings. So, this is the key difference between Hymenoptera and Diptera. Hymenoptera includes 150,000 of described species while Diptera includes 125,000 described species.

The below infographic lists more differences between Hymenoptera and Diptera.

Summary – Hymenoptera vs Diptera

Hymenoptera and Dipteral are two orders of insects. Hymenoptera comprises of insects with joined membranous two pairs of wings. Diptera comprises of insects with a single pair of wings. Sawflies, wasps, bees, and ants belong to Hymenoptera while flies, mosquitoes, gnats and punkies belong to Diptera. Thus, this summarizes the difference between Hymenoptera and Diptera.

Reference:

1. “Dipteran.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., Available here.
2. “Hymenoptera.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 17 Oct. 2020, Available here.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Sphex pensylvanicus” By Hardyplants – (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Anthomyiidae (female) (10144905255)” By Martin Cooper from Ipswich, UK – Anthomyiidae (female) (CC BY 2.0) via Commons Wikimedia