Venation

Venation is the name given to the arrangement (number and position) of veins within an insect's wing. Entomologists study the venation of wings and this is often used as a way of differentiating between otherwise similar species.

In early insects the veins running down the wing (longitudinal veins) were connected by a series of cross veins. Most insect groups have lost, or dramatically reduced the number of, these cross veins. However, some insects such as dragonflies and damselflies have wings that contain many cross veins.

A close up photograph of a damselfly, the veins in the wings are clearly visible.
Photograph by Quartl licensed under Creative Commons.

Related terms

• Alary
• Costa
• Dichotomous key
• Direct flight muscles
• Discal cell
• Indirect flight muscles
• Jugum
• Odonata
• Pterostigma
• Quadrilateral
• Vein

Related groups of terms

• Invertebrate body structure

Related pages on this web site

• Dragonflies and Damselflies - Order Odonata
• Insect classification
• Insect wings

See other words beginning with V