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Chitin facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Young grasshopper on grass stalk02
The entire exterior of a grasshopper is chitin.

Chitin is a semitransparent material that is the main component of the exoskeletons of arthropods, such as crustaceans (e.g. crab, lobster and shrimp) and insects (e.g. ants, beetles and butterflies), of the cell walls of fungi, the radula of molluscs and the beaks of cephalopods (e.g. squid, and octopuses). Chitin has also proven useful for several medical and industrial purposes.

Lepidoptera 001
A butterfly's head and chest are covered with plates of hard chitin, while the abdomen is covered with soft chitin. The wings also are a chitinous membrane.

Images for kids

  • Glanzkaefer

    A close-up of the wing of a leafhopper; the wing is composed of chitin.

  • Lyristes plebejus

    A cicada emerges from its chitinous nymphal exoskeleton.

See also

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Chitin Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.