Insect: call it earwig initially (7)
I believe the answer is:
termite
'insect' is the definition.
(I know that termite is a type of insect)
'call it earwig initially' is the wordplay.
'call' becomes 'term' (term can mean to call something by a name).
'initially' says to take the initial letters.
The first letter of 'earwig' is 'e'.
'term'+'it'+'e'='TERMITE'
(Other definitions for termite that I've seen before include "Whitish antlike insect" , "Wood-eating insect" , "Ant-like insect which destroys timber" , "Social insect" , "Social type" .)