Invertebrata Gallery

Invertebrates are animals that do not have a backbone or spinal column. They make up 97% of all known animal species, and can be found in almost every habitat on Earth

Ornithoptera alexandrae, Queen Alexandras birdwing butterfl
A mounted specimen of Queen Alexandras birdwing butterfly from Papua New Guinea. Male specimen measuring 188 mm across wingtips. See 14964 for the female which is larger

Entomology Specimens
A specimen tray from the Natural History Museums Entomology Department showing the diversity of insects in terms of shape, size and colours

Giant octopus
Plate 26 from Histoire naturelle des Mollusques by Count Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon, 1805

Discosphaera tubifera, coccolithophore
Scanning electron microscope (SEM) showing the unicellular planktonic algae Discosphaera tubifera from the North Atlantic surrounded by a sphere of calcite plates - coccoliths

Chrysina limbata, silver chafer beetle
Silver chafer beetle specimen. The beetles have a base pigment covered by several colourless microscopically thin layers called laminae

Phoebis sennae, cloudless sulphur butterfly
Photograph of a mounted specimen of cloudless sulphur. Male. Species occurs on the Galapagos Islands

Plate 17 from Libellulinae Europaeae by de Charpentier
Illustration of dragonflies. Plate 17 from Libellulinae Europaeae illustrated and described by Toussint de Charpentier, 1840

Extinct marine reptiles
Sheet 1 of a series of posters called Extinct Animals by Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins c. 1862. This collection of marine reptiles lived during the Jurassic period between 200

Asteroceras, fossil ammonite
A 16 cm diameter specimen of the Jurassic ammonite Asteroceras from the Lower Jurassic of Dorset, England

Ophrys apifera, bee orchid
Watercolour by Arthur Harry Church, 17 June 1913

Longhorn beetle

Xanthopan morganii praedicta, sphinx moth
Darwins sphinx moth, found in Madagascar. The species as a whole is known as Morgans sphinx

Ocypus olens, devils coach horse beetle model
A large scale model of the devils coach horse beetle (Ocypus olens). A beetle that is commonly found beneath logs. Held within the Natural History Museum, London

Leaf-cutter ants carrying pieces of leaf
Leaf-cutter ants transporting neatly extracted pieces of leaf. These ants derive from the rainforests of Central and South America

Schistosoma spp. blood flukes
Blood flukes mating. These parasites are found in man and other mammals. Snails are the intermediate hosts

Mosquito in Dominican amber
A mosquito in trapped and preserved in Dominican amber. Lower Miocene about 20 million years old. Image from Amber The Natural Time Capsule. Figure 90

Cladognathus sp. stag beetle
A specimen of a large stag beetle from Asia. Stag beetles belong to the family (Lucanidae). Only male stag beetles have horns or antlers

Morpho cypris, blue morpho butterfly
Butterfly from Central America. South America. Specimen on display at the Natural History Museum at Tring, part of the Natural History Museum, London

Cimex lectularius, bed bug
Scanning electron microscope image of a bed bug (x 17). The sucking mouthparts enable the feeding bedbugs to pierce the hosts tissues and siphon out a blood meal

Schistocerca gregaria, desert locust
A desert locust perching on a branch. Locusts sometimes swarm to form groups of up to 80 million and can migrate over large distances

Heteropoda venatoria, huntsman spider
This a large brown spider with a flattened body structure and a leg span of between 7 and 12 cm. These spiders hunt at night, and mainly prey upon cockroaches

Pharmacophagus antenor, giant swallowtail
Giant swallowtail butterfly and the common rose (Pachliopta aristolochiae). Plate 15 from Insects of India by Edward Donovan (1768-1837)

Butterflies from the Amazon by H.W. Bates
A page (p 144) from a notebook of Henry W. Bates relating to the insect fauna of the Amazon Valley or DRW, 1851-1854

Entomological specimens of Lepidoptera
Unidentified photograph of mounted specimens of butterflies and moths

Janthina violacea, violet snail
Watercolour 398 by Thomas Watling, entitled Boala, from the Watling Collection

Sabatia bartramii, savannah pink & Eacles imperialis, imperi
Drawing 11 (Ewan 38) from the Botanical and zoological drawings (1756-1788) by William Bartram. Held in the Botany Library at the Natural History Museum, London

H.W. Bates illustrated notebooks
Plate 7 from a notebook of Henry W. Bates (1825-92) relating to the insect fauna of the Amazon Valley or DRW, 1851-1854

Beetle illustrations
Double page spread of pencil and watercolour illustrations of beetles by Henry Walter Bates

Coloured sketches of insects on Page 35 from Bates notebook 1. Bates was a renowned Victorian entomologist

Nematode worm
This nematode worm specimen has an unsegmented, cylindrical body and is also known as a roundworm

Dragonflies and damselflies from Collection of Drawings by Dutch Artists, 17th-19th centuries. Held in the Entomology Library at the Natural History Museum, London

Octopus
Watercolour 401 by the Port Jackson Painter, from the Watling Collection

Gromphadorhina portentosa, hissing cockroach
A pair of hissing cockroaches also known as the Madagascan hissing cockroach. This species of roach is chocolate brown with no wings

Simulium damnosum, Simulian blackfly
Scanning electron microscope image of the head showing the compound eye (x 130). The fly is a vector of a parasite which causes River Blindness. Coloured artifically by computer

Flea illustration
Page 201 from Micrographia or some Physiological description of minute bodies made by magnifying glasses (1665) by Robert Hooke

Snail teeth

Ornithoptera alexandrae, Queen Alexandras birdwing butterfl
Digital image of the upperside of a mounted specimen of a Queen Alexandras birdwing butterfly from the family Papilionidae

Peppered moth
Two specimens of peppered moths exhibited on a soot-covered tree. This is a good demonstration of genetic selection through changing environment

20th Century Art: Weevil (Rhopalomesites tardyi), 1998 by Ma
Watercolour. Russell is an example of a scientist turned artist. Trained initially as an entomologist his combined love of beetles and art resulted in a series of exceptional drawings of weevils

Morpho rhetenor, blue morpho butterfly
Illustrative plate of a blue morpho butterfly from Insects of China by Edward Donovan (1768-1837)

Caterpillar egg
Scanning electron microscope image of a caterpillar egg (x 90), the caterpillar emerges by chewing through the shell (x 350)

Blackfly antenna
Scanning electron microscope image of a blackfly antenna (x 350). These long sensory organs feel and taste objects as well as sensing vibrations and smells (x 1.1K)

Anopheles gambiae, mosquito
Scanning electron microscope image showing a close-up of the compound eye of a female mosquito (x 2200 on a standard 9 cm wide print)

Morpho menelaus, blue morpho
Scanning electron microscope image of the wing scales from the wing of a South American blue morpho butterfly (x 670 on a standard 9 cm wide print)

Emiliana huxleyi, coccolith
Scanning electron microscope image of a complete sphere of coccoliths from modern oceans. These are thin calcite shells protecting the coccolithophore within

Scolopendra gigantea, giant centipede
A giant centipede which was brought into the Museums Insect Identification service after being found in a living room in London. The specimen is venomous and not native to the UK

Dressed Fleas
Dressed fleas on display at the Natural History Museum in Tring

Sarcoptes scabiei, scabies mite
Scanning electron microscope image of an itch or scabies mite, a parasite that infests a wide variety of mammalian hosts including humans

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Invertebrates are animals that do not have a backbone or spinal column. They make up 97% of all known animal species, and can be found in almost every habitat on Earth. Invertebrates include insects, arachnids, mollusks, crustaceans, cnidarians (jellyfish and corals), worms and many more. Most invertebrates have soft bodies with no internal skeleton or exoskeleton; however some species such as crabs and lobsters do have an external skeleton made of chitin. Invertebrates are important for the environment because they provide food for other animals, help to break down organic matter in the soil and recycle nutrients back into the ecosystem. They also play an important role in pollination of plants.